A Twist in Fate
by Take Your Sweet Time
Summary: Its been years since Reyna has last seen Jason. Jason did something Reyna will never forget. She doesnt want to see him but she has one day has to. There is someone that has their fates together forever. Question is will Reyna accept that?
1. Chapter 1

**I hope you like it. I'll try to update the other stories tomorrow but no later by Monday night.**

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_"Hold fast to dreams_

_For if dreams die_

_Life is a broken-winged bird_

_That cannot fly."_

_ -Langston Hughes_

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Chapter 1:

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_"l love you." Jason said to Reyna who had her arms around his neck._

_"Me too." She said. Jason leaned in to kiss her. The kiss was full of passion and well love. Reyna pulled away and Jason grunted. "We as praetors have duties to do." Jason chuckled._

_"I came back from a quest with the other six taking down mother earth and I'm here without a break being told by the girl that I love to leave since I have praetors duties." Jason said in fake shock. Reyna playfully pulled away and punched his arm._

_"You said I am worth it." Reyna said._

_"Yes you are." Jason said as he opened his arm for Reyna to return to him. Reyna returned to him._

* * *

_"Do you every want to have kids one day?" Jason asked Reyna. They were in New Rome as they walked around and Reyna saw girls with envious looks on their faces._

_"Sure. It's a natural step." Reyna said._

_"I guess so. It takes two people to love each other to produce a child." Jason said innocently._

_"Not really love each other. It takes two people that are feeling very hormonal with each other which causes that." Reyna said._

_"I know but I like to think of it as two people who really love each other. For example, of that type of love is me and you." Jason said._

_"There is a next step to that." Reyna said._

_"Are we close to that step?" Jason asked. Reyna felt eat go to her face._

_"I don't know only time will tell." Reyna said with a mysterious gleam in her dark eyes._

_"Dang it. I hate when you get mysterious." Jason playfully said. Reyna punched him in the back of the head._

* * *

_"Why did you do that?" Reyna shouted._

_"Reyna, I can explain." Jason said as he tried to calm her down._

_"No. Don't try." Reyna said as she head out the door but Jason grabbed her wrist and pulled her into a kiss. She felt as if it was a kiss of death since something had died inside her. Her heart. She slapped him across the face._

_"Don't you dare try that again." Reyna yelled._

_"Reyna, I can explain." Jason repeated again._

_"I was foolish. Foolish. I don't know why Venus placed you once more in my path when you were once out of my reach. I thought we were going to get married and possibly raise a family together. I was wrong. That was my dream. That dream just shattered. It crumbled. It is like a building when it falls, it falls nothing can stop it. I dreamt of that dream. You crumbled it. You stomped on it. That dream gave me hope but that hope died." Reyna said. She didn't realized one teardrop escaped from her eyes._

_"Reyna." Jason said._

_"Have a happy life Jason." Reyna whispered as she ran out the door. Jason didn't reacted quickly to catch her. Reyna ran into the night_.

* * *

Reyna wakes up from her dream. Jason, she thought. It's been 14 years since she last seen him. She last seenhim when she was at age 18. She thinks of him constantly but she doesn't want to see him. She never wants to see him after what he did. It change her life forever.

Reyna sighs. It was another day. Reyna got out of her bed and went to brush her teeth, shower and get her things ready for work. Reyna went to the kitchen and makes breakfast.

She loves her house. It was purchase 14 years ago. In this house she took comfort and swallows the pride she had left. The house was relatively big. It was two stories tall with 5 rooms for guest. The floor was made out of cherry wood, and the walls were a beige color. The house outside looked regal. It looked very much like the White House but without the entrance of the three poles. The entrance was just a simple porch. The house may look all tough but it had a homely feeling. Well according to her guest that she's had. The house had authority it reminds her old home, Camp Jupiter.

"Breakfast is ready." Reyna yells as she places scrambled eggs on a plate. She then grabs orange juice from the fridge and pours some into a cup.

"Yummy." Her only daughter said. Her name was Alison. She had dark black hair and blue eyes. She wears a lot of black. She wears black ripped pants, black shirt and a black jacket. Alison reminds Reyna so much of Thalia. She hasn't seen Thalia for 14 years. She knew if she sees Thalia she would remind herself of Jason.

"What's on the schedule today, mama." Alison said as she props her feet on the table.

"Sane as usual." Reyna said. She then slaps Alison's feel. Alison places her feet back on the ground.

"Good to hear." Alison said. She then drinks her orange juice. Alison then cleans her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Alison." Reyna scolds. Alison raises her hand.

"Sorry." She said.

"Your not supposed to do that." Reyna said.

"Why not?" Alison asked.

"It disgusting." Reyna said.

"Cool." Alison said.

"What will I do with you." Reyna mutters.

"You said I'm worth it." Alison said with a grin. Those were the exact words she said to Jason. Reyna sighs. Alison frowns. She reaches to grab her mother's hand.

"I'm sorry." Alison said truthfully.

"It's okay." Reyna said.

"Then take me to school, pronto." Alison said as she clapps her hands.

"Repeat that again." Reyna hisses.

"I mean can you drop me off to school." Alison said.

"Sure." Reyna said. After they finish cleaning they walk out to the garage to the car. The car starts and they left. It was silent for half of the ride until Alison speaks.

"Mom." Alison said. Reyan raises her eyebrow indicating to continue.

"Do you have dreams?" Alison asks. I used to, Reyna thought.

"Sure." Reyna said.

"What are they?" Alison asked.

"To see you grow up." Reyna whispers.

"Don't give me that bull-" Alison didn't continue since her mom raises an eyebrow warning her not to finish that sentence.

"Don't you dream to want to fall in love again? Like in those stories you've told me of you and dad?" Alison asks. Reyna grips the steering wheel. Her knuckles turned white as snow. She then releases.

"No." Reyna said seriously.

"Why not?" Alison asks. I don't want I be hurt again, Reyna wants to say.

"I just don't want to." Reyna said in a soft whisper.

"There must be reason. I remember you were so happy when you told me stories about you and dad when I was little girl." Alison said.

"I don't want to fall in love." Reyna said.

"Why?" Alison said.

"You will learn in time." Reyna said. The car stops. They were here at Alison's school. Alison sighed.

"Bye mom." Alison said as she slings her backpack on her back.

"Bye." Reyna said. Alison got out of the car and closed the door. Alison turned to wave at her mom. Reyna waves too.

"I used to have a dream to fall in love. I thought I had it but things changed. When the dream die I felt as if I was suffocating." Reyna whispers. She then grabs the steering wheel and kept driving.

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**I really hoped you like it. Jason will be in it but later in the story but I don't know how. I have this:**

**A.) Reyna gets in an accident and is sent to the hospital. Jason gets into a different accident and goes to the hospital.**

**B.) Bump into each other at the grocery. (I won't blame if you think this is lame.)**

**C.) If you another idea you can put it on review or PM me.**

**We obviously know how a child is made *wiggling eyebrows* I just don't know if I should write about how Alison was made. I promise if I do that it won't be very detail. Just general.**

**I have an account on fiction press now. It's the same name as this one, Take Your Sweet Time. I would appreciate if you check it out.**

**Finally any suggestions on quotes? I have a few good ones but I need more. So far, I haven't found many good quotes**.


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, since I posted the last chapter I haven't stop thinking about ideas for this chapter. But first a few responses.**

**I am Reyna daughter of Bellona: It's my favorite quote too! I always think about that quote everyday.**

**IamBellatrixLieutenantofVold y: Yeah, I know I made careless grammar mistakes. I went back and corrected them. By the way, the ones in italics are supposed to be pasted tense the ones that are in regular are in the present. I understand the Beta part but truth is *puffs cheeks then releases* I jut don't want a Beta. I rather learn my own mistakes for in the future I won't make them. I respect those who have a Beta. About the cliche I know it's just I really couldn't think of any ideas. But i do have an idea! The one about the park isn't a bad idea I will be the first to admit that but Alison is 14 *Hint* I'm not so sure a 14 year old girl is seen very much going down the slide. I do appreciate your review. I will try to not make anymore careless grammar mistakes.**

** LostInThought: Alison will probably meet Jason first.**

**IamAnnabethdaughterofAthena: Thanks. I also appreciate the review for my other stories.:)**

**I am Thalia daughter of Zeus: Your such a stalker. *playfully sticks out tongue***

**Foreverintheshade: I will finish it! I just hope you stay tune!**

**I am Bianca Daughter of Hades: Not the pizza guy. Not a bad idea though. XD The quote is for the reader to relate to the story or just something that leaves them thinking.**

**Anon: Alison is 14.**

**xXxMusicNCookiesxXx: I have another story that I am writing called "The Notebook". It's about Reyna forgetting her memory when something happens. I suggest you read it.^.^**

**That was a lot of writing and I haven't gotten to the story yet. I wanted to respond to everyone so no ine can get their feeling hurt or anything. Now back to the story!**

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_I am not arguing with you-_

_I am telling you._

_ -James Whistler_

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Reyna arrives at her job. She works for the state as a criminal lawyer. Reyna has a strong sense of justice and she loves arguing. The job suits Reyna perfectly. It was hard to earn her college degree and her law license at age 18, but she did it. Everyone at college and at law school thought she would drop out, since Alison was small at that time but she did. She remembers that she work part time just to cover the bills. She did her homework. She receive the top grades in the class. She is proud of herself. She did it all without a man by her side. She knows she sacrifice her twenties but she has a daughter who depends on her. She wouldn't let her daughter down. Success is the only option, failure is not.

Today was a big day, it was the first day of her murder case. It is a high profile case by the media. Reyna wants to convicts Mary Lee Stuart. Mary Lee Stuart was charge with the murder of her husband, Billy George Stuart. Billy George Stuart was a wealthy business man. Mary Lee Stuart was a beautiful women he met on a business trip to Las Vegas. In Las Vegas, Mary is known as a gold digger. Mary only wants his money but didn't want the commitment she use to have with Billy. The only way to keep the money to herself was to kill Billy. It sounds simple. Not. There was a problem. The problem was there was no murder weapon, and no DNA of Mary on Billy's dead body. Billy's body was found at their multi-million dollar mansion in the master bedroom. Billy was stab to death. Tragic.

The hearing is about to begin. She is the leader on trying to bring Mary down. Her co-workers are name Luke Castellan, Charles Beckendorf and Bianca di Angelo. They all have the same goal. They are all different but manage to stay on task and work hard to achieve it.

"I hate that women." Bianca mutters.

"Grudges are not good." Beckendorf whispers.

"Whatever." Bianca mutters, "When I tried to talk to her she screamed at me."

"Patience." Luke whispers.

The judge was a chubby African-American with curly grayish hair, stubby cheeks, and big round glasses. He clears his voice.

"This court is the State vs Mary Lee Staurt. I want this to be a clean argument no potty mouths," he looks directly at Luke. Luke then has a face expression that said what-did-I-do. "The State will be first to present their case." Luke, Beckendorf, and Bianca look up at Reyna. Reyna nods. She then stands.

"Thank you your honor." Reyna then paces the court house. "Mary Lee Stuart is cold. She is greedy. She is selfish. The list can go on. Mary Lee killed her husband. Would you like to know why? Money. Money can cause you to do anything. In this case, kill."

"I object." A male voice shouts. It is Mary's lawyer, Andrew Griffin. Andrew Griffin is known to get dirty when he needs too. Reyna isn't afraid to get her hands dirty either. Andrew has light brown hair, mossy green eyes, a slightly tan skin and he was tall. Reyna estimates about 6'1. He is attractive.

"Quiet, Mr. Griffin." The judge orders.

"My apologies your honor but she is making false arguments about my client." Andrew said.

"Quiet, Mr. Griffin." The judge repeats. He then nods to Reyna. Reyna continues.

"Mr. Griffin, I believe, I am not presenting false arguments, I am telling you what she did." Reyna said. Andrew wants to reply but the judge looks at him as if warning him. Andrew remains quiet.

"Mary is known to have an exotic past." Reyna said.

"That has nothing to do with this case." Andrew said. Luke stands and points a warning finger at Andrew.

"I suggest you hush, Mr. Griffin. This is unprofessional and it shouldn't be tolerated." Luke said. Luke then sits down. The judge looks at look with a that's-my-job-to-tell-him-to-quiet face. Reyna continues.

"Mary was known to hang out with the wealthy bachelor men. She wanted to find her next meal ticket and it was sadly, Billy George Stuart. She claims it to be love." Reyna said as the interrupts begin again but not by Andrew. It was Mary Lee Stuart herself who sits next to Andrew. Mary has long dark brown hair that falls to her mid back, light brown eyes, thin lips, a small nose that turns upwards, milky white skin and an athletic body. She wore dark pink strapless dress that was very short with black spike high heels.

"I was in love with Billy. I love him. You probably don't know a thing about love since you haven't experienced it?" Mary said. I have, Reyna wants to say but holds back. It made her blood start to boil. How dare she ask that, Reyna ask herself.

"Mary quiet." The judge orders. Mary crosses her arms with a not satisfy look on her face. Reyna smirks.

"Claims to be in love, huh? Love for him or for his money? Don't tell me for him. Was it a so called 'love' at first sight? Or was it love when you seen him sporting a Porsche? Which is it?" Reyna questions. Mary looks at Reyna as if she shoots daggers at her. I have face worse, Reyna thought.

"The evidence we have is a so called friend of Mary saying, that Mary killed her husband. She did it for the money. Only wants the money. Mary to my understanding you had an affair?" Reyna question. Mary is surprise that Reyna knows this. "Did you wanted to run away with your lover?" Reyna then walks over to Luke. Luke hands her a plastic back that contain a glove.

"This glove has Mary's DNA. You may ask it doesn't tie that Mary did, think again. The glove was sent to the lab and the result came that the surface was bleached but had traces of blood,Billy's blood. When Billy's body was examine, the things that made up the glove was found on Billy." Reyna said as she drops the plastic in front of Mary.

"Thank you, Reyna. Tomorrow the state will continue their case." The judge announces. He then grabs his hammer and slams it. "Court dismissed." Mary quickly gets up and walks to Reyna.

"Listen. All you said about me and Billy are lies. I loved him. Yes, I had a horrible past but I left it when I met Billy. I didn't know he was rich until he told me." Mary said.

"I am only going by the facts. The facts point to you Mrs. Stuart." Reyna said.

"Those facts are lies." Mary hisses.

"I am not arguing with you Mrs. Stuart." Reyna said then turns to leave.

"Reyna," Andrew said, "I see you are building up an interesting case. What do you have under your sleeve?" He asks.

"I go by evidence." Reyna said then leaves him.

"Great job." Beckendorf said. Reyna sighs.

"I hate standing up and talking." Reyna said.

"You are the leader in this case." Luke points out.

"I don't know why." Reyna said.

"Remember we pulled straws? Whoever pulled the shortest is the leader." Bianca said.

"That was probably the worst idea ever." Reyna said. Beckendorf and Luke laugh. Reyna's cellphone rings. Reyna walks to her suitcase and pulls out her phone.

"Hello?" Reyna said.

"Hello Reyna, I am calling from Alison's school." The woman in the other line said.

"What happen to Alison?" Reyna ask, her voice full of concern.

"She got into a fight." The woman said.

"Is she okay?" Reyna asks.

"Yes. But she is with the principal and she wishes to speak with you." The woman said.

"I'm going." Reyna said. She hangs up.

"What did Alison do?" Bianca ask.

"A fight." Reyna said. Luke gives a long whistle.

"A fighter just like her mother." Luke said with a grin. Reyna rolls her eyes. She gathers her things.

"I'm sorry that I am leaving in a rush." Reyna said. Beckenford raises his hand and waves.

"It's okay." Beckendorf said.

"Thanks." Reyna said.

"Bye." Luke, Bianca, and Beckendorf said together. Reyna waves and leaves. Reyna gets to her car starts the engine and leaves. Reyna parks at Alison's school. Alison's school was 3 stories high. The outside of the building was light brown. The front lawn was green grass that is freshly cut daily. Reyna walks inside. The halls were color peach with the walls decorate with awards of many types. She walks to the first door to her right, the attendance office. A lady that is sitting in her desk looks up and smiles.

"Reyna?" She asks. She wears black pants with a blue flower blouse.

"Yes." Reyna said.

"Come with me." The lady then leads Reyna to a door. The door is just a plain door except it has a sigh that says 'Principal' in yellow cursive. The lady opens the door for Reyna. Reyna walks in. She sees Alison sitting on a dark green fabric chair. Reyna walks to the principal. The principal is chubby with a black suit, a blue top, green eyes, black rim glasses and blonde hair that is in a messy hair bun. She stands up from her leather red chair.

"Hello, my name is Mrs. Looney." Mrs. Looney said.

"Reyna." Reyna said. The two women then shake hands.

"I called you in about Alison." Mrs. Looney said. Reyna sits next to Alison.

"Obviously." Alison mutters. Reyna looks at her.

"What did she do?" Retna ask.

"I stood up for myself." Alison said.

"She got into a fight." Mrs. Looney said.

"Who?" Reyna ask.

"With Alexis and Mackenzie." Alison answers.

"Yes." Mrs. Looney confirmed.

"I got sick and tired of it. They make fun of me. They call me goth because of all the black clothing I wear. They call me stupid. They are the stupid they are barely passing their classes. They call me ugly. I at least don't look like a living Barbie. They even called me fat. I am not fat. Fat that so called 'natural' butt of theirs." Alison said.

"Have you talked to the girls?" Reyna ask.

"Yes." Mrs' Loiney said as she laces her hands together.

"And?" Reyna ask.

"They deny this involvement." Mrs. Looney said.

"But they got into a fight." Reyna points out.

"Alison punched Mackenzie into a nose bleed." Mrs. Looney said plainly. Not bad, Reyna thought.

"So what? Are you assuming that Alison randomly ran up to this Mackenzie girl and punched her?" Reyna ask.

"No, but Alison will be suspended for 2 days." Mr. Looney announces.

"What?" Alison and Reyna said together.

"Until we figure out what really happened." Mr. Looney said with a smile. Reyna wants to rip that smile off her face.

"I expect the two other girls to be suspended as well. It wouldn't be fair for Alison." Reyna said.

"Of course." Mrs. Looney said.

"Is that all?" Reyna ask.

"Yes." said.

"Alright." Reyna said. Her and Alison got up and left.

"What did she ask you?" Reyna asks her daughter. They are now driving home.

"She ask what did I do. She ask why do I get in trouble so much. She said that why would someone ever want to hurt those two girls." Alison said angrily. It ticks her off when people don't believe what she is saying, even though it's the truth. Reyna believes Alison. Together, they have talk to the counselor, and the past principals. They investigate the claims and nothing came up. Almost, every student backs up Alexis and Mackenzie's stories. The ones that do believe in Alison's story are afraid to come forward.

"I believe you." Reyna whispers.

"I know." Alison whispers back.

"But it is not okay to punch people." Reyna said.

"She deserved it." Alison complains.

"Violence is not the answer to this." Reyna said. After the war against mother earth Reyna experience horrible things and tries to search for other solutions besides violence. It's hard for Reyna since she is the daughter of a war goddess. Fighting is her nature. It is a part of her.

"I hate it when teachers don't listen." Alison said angrily. Lightning booms up in the sky. Just like your dad when he got upset, Reyna thought. Alison doesn't know about Reyna's past about being a demigod but she does hope to tell her in the future.

"Fighting is not good." Reyna whispers.

"I know. I just hate how I always have to argue with Mrs. Looney. She blames me." Alison said.

"Telling" Reyna corrects.

"I hate how I always have to tell her things she doesn't believe." Alison said. They made it home.

"I need to go burn off some steam." Alison said. Reyna nods in agreement. Alison then got out of the car, closes the door and walks. Reyna doesn't know where. She gives Alison her privacy. She knew this was the last straw. She has talk to all the achool officials. Reyna wants to switch Alison schools but Alison refuses saying 'It's a battle I won't back down. The girls insult other people and I am the only one strong enough to stand up for them, including me.' Reyna admires Alison for that. Reyna knew what it was like defending people, like when she had to defend them from Octavian at Camp Jupiter. Reyna smiles. She then gets out if the car and enters her house.

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**Did you like it? Not much? I knew sooner or later I was going to be ask what type of job Reyna has. Andrew will be involved in the future chapters. About, the Luke, Beckendorf, and Bianca thing. I really enjoy there characters. They all died for good causes. I was abit heart broken when they died. Especially, Beckendorf. They all started over. Let's pretend Bianca didnt do a rebirth. Beckendorf wouldn't be the same without Sienna they are mentioned but later in the story.**

**Alison is a fighter. She doesn't back down. I like that. Mrs. Looney random name that popped into mind. Alexis and Mackenzie the first two names that popped up! Please, don't be offended if your name is Alexis or Mackenzie. **

**Jason will be in but soon! Be patient! Also the Jason and Reyna reunion I'll say soon but not sure how soon yet. Patience for Jeyna!**

**Review!XD**


	3. Chapter 3

**Right now, I am deeply sadden by the whole Jasper thing. I read the 5 chapters on Google Book. I was not happy. Jason deserved the brick.**

**I will like to thank, I am Bianca daughter of Hades for the quote she gave me.**

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_"We are not friends, we are strangers with memories."_

_-Anonymous_

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Alison feels her blood boiling. She is walking to the park. The park is the only place where she can think in peace. She looks up at the sky an she sees the sky gray. She always finds it weird that the sky seems to reflect her mood perfectly. She keep walking. Alison has her headphones at full blast. She likes her music loud. She remembers her mom would've said to turn the volume down if she was here with her. She keeps walking.

She finally makes it to the park. The park was big with plenty of grass, a baseball field, track field, and the place where the kids play on. It has monkey bars, slides, swings, it was you average typical park. Alison smiles. She remembers her mom use to take her here when she was small. Her smile then fades away when she remembers other things.

_"Mommy, higher, higher." Alison squealed._ _She was on the swings and her mom pushed her. Alison wore blue jeans, a white blouse and her hair pulled in a ponytail. She was age 4._

_"I don't want you to get hurt." Reyna said._

_"I won't get hurt." Alison assured her mother._

_"Go, play with the kids." Reyna said. The swing stopped moving. Alison stepped off the swing and went to play with the other girls. She played with a girl called Mellisa. Mellisa had blonde hair with hazel eyes. She wore a green sleeveless shirt with white pants. Together, they builded a sandcastle. Then, a man came to the place where the girls played._

_"Melissa, it's time to go home." The man said sweetly. He looked exactly like Mellisa but he wore blue jeans, with a light blue collar shirt._

_"Five minutes, daddy, please." Mellisa pleaded._

_"Fine, five minutes, then we leave." The man stood up and walked away._

_"Who is he?" Alison asked._

_"My daddy."_

_"What's a daddy?"_

_"You don't have a daddy?" Mellisa asked. Alison shaked her head._

_"Everyone has a daddy," Melissa said and then pouted._

_"I don't." Alison whispered._

_"Look around," Mellissa said as she pointed. Alison saw a dad that pushed his daughter on a swing, a dad that played tag with her daughter, and a dad that hugged his daughter, who cried in his arms. Alison felt her heart shattered._

Alison now feels hate towards her father, or to better say, the other person who help create her. Her mother plays both roles on parenting, both the mother figure and the father figure, but it just didn't feel the same. She use to wonder, when she was smaller, when her dad would come home, scoop her up in his arms and tells her how much he loves her. Now, that Alison thinks back on it, she thought it was foolish to think like that. Alison then bumps into someone.

The person that she just bump into was man. The man has blonde hair, blue eyes, tan skin, well built body, medium height and a scar in the top of his upper lip.

"Ouch," Alison said. Great, she thought, first it was stupid Alexis and Mackenzie, then thinking of my abandoning father, and now I have this stupid guy who bumps into me. "Watch where your're going?" Alison said angrily. The man looks down in her with a confuse expression on his face.

"Thalia?" He asks. He then stretches out his hand, to pull her up. Alison looks at him with you're-kidding-me-right look and she then gets up by herself.

"Who the Pluto is Thalia? Buddy, I suggest you visit the eye doctor," Alison said, as she pats herself, to get rid of the dirt.

"Oh," the man mutters.

"I can hear you." Alison said.

"Oh," the man said.

"At least, say sorry." Alison said.

"Me? You bumped into me."

"No, I didn't. I was just minding my own business and boom, you knock me to the floor." Alison yells. People start to look at Alison and the man. The man ears start to get red.

"Don't like attention, huh," Alison asks with a smirk on her face.

"No, now lower your voice." The man said.

"Who is Thalia?"

"My sister."

"Wouldn't she be all wrinkly?"

"I don't know, but you just looks alot like her."

"I do not have wrinkles." Alison snaps. The man chuckles. He holds out his hand.

"My name is Jason," Jason said with a grin in his face.

"Alison, my name is not Thalia," Alison said as she crosses her arms around her chest, completly ignoring the hand Jason has out.

"Alison," Jason repeats as he takes his hand down. Alison looks at him from head to toe, he wears dark blue jeans and a white t-shirt. Alison then looks around to see almost all the moms with their kids were checking him out. Jason looks where Alison is looking and turns away. "Can we talk somewhere eles?" Jason ask.

"No, I feel comfortable, right here." Alison said.

"Your enjoying this, aren't you?"

"I would be lying if I said, no."

"Well, I don't."

"I think that was the point I was trying to make," Alison said with a smile on her face. Jason grunts. Alison shrugs, "That's what you get for bumping into me."

"You bumped into me," Jason said as he furrows his eyebrows.

"Did not."

"Did too."

"Did not" Jason said. Jason hasn't gotten into a fight like this since Reyna left him. Reyna, he thought, I think if you more and more everyday. He sometimes wonders what she might be doing right now, if she thinks of him, if she is okay, and if she found someone new. Jason hopes that the last part isn't true. He doesn't know what he would do if he finds out she found someone. It's been 14 years, about to be 15 years since he last seen her. The last time he saw her was when she walked out of his apartment, when they had their huge fight. Jason regrets what he did. He regrets the things that he has put her through when they were teenagers.

"Did too," Alison said, then stomps her feet on the ground.

"Fine, you win," Jason said with defeat in his voice. Alison smirks. Jason smiles. Alison stops smirking.

"Why are you smiling," Alison asks with a confuse expression on her face.

"You just remind me of someone," Jason said, he looks at the floor. Alison can sense the hurt in his voice. She sort of feels bad for him.

"Of Thalia," Alison ask, hoping it would lighten up his mood.

"No," Jason said with a shy smile.

"What's her name?"

"What?"

"Dude, did I stutter? I don't think so? What's her name?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Cheer up, you got plenty of mothers wanting some Jason, over there," Alison said, then points to the moms still staring.

"No, she was just, special."

"Oh."

"I shouldn't be telling you my problems. Sorry that I bumped into you," Jason said, turned and walks away. Rude, Alison thought. Alison then starts to walk. She sees her favorite spot, a high hill with a big tree. She visits the place when she wants to relax or just blow some steam. She lays down, puts on her earphones and looks up at the sky. Jason, Alison thought, you must have screwed up very bad for a girl to leave you.

Jason feels bad. He knows it was rude to walk away but ever since Reyna left he can hardly talk about her. The only reason why Jason knows she is still alive is because of Nico. Jason has beg Nico to tell him where exactly Reyna is but Nico says he doesn't know. Jason stops walking. He turns around and walks back to where he bump into Alison. Alison wasn't there. Jason decides to find her. He walks until he sees a hill with a person laying down in the floor. Jason walks to the hill, and walks up to the hill. Alison is there with earphones on full blast. She is drumming her fingers against the grass.

Alison is surprise that she sees him again. "Stalker," Aluson said.

"Sorry, that I walked away, it's just I don't like talking about that person," Jason then looks at Alison's eyes. Those eyes look similar, Jason thought. Alison removes her earphones.

"Was she _that_ important to you?"

"Yes."

"What did you do?"

"Why do you assume that _I _did something?"

"Well you have a temper, you seem hot headed, but I guess it's the same thing as temper, you have obvious hurt in your eyes, and you seem lost in thought."

"Was it that obvious?"

"Yep, you bump into me, you refused to apologize to me, when you were fighting with me you said, I reminded you of someone, meaning, her."

"It could be anyone."

"Okay, so when did you and him break up then," Alison ask with a grin on her face.

Jason clicks his tongue, "It's a girl, well woman."

"I thought so, plus, if it makes you feel any better, the moms who were checking you out would be disappointed if-"

"Don't finish that sentence."

"Okay. Since you won't tell me what you did, describe her."

"This is ridiculous, I am telling my love life to a girl."

"A girl that is wise for her age."

"Wise?"

"Well, I knew you were moping over her without you telling me, so I am pretty sure that gives me a few points."

Jason bites his lower lip before he begins to talk, " True."

"Sit and tell Dr. Alison your love troubles." Jason lays in the floors. "Well I said, sit, but laying down on the grass is perfectly fine." Alison mutters.

"She was strong, she was hard as a rock when others saw her, but was actually a girl that felt scared, but put on a brave face. She's been through a lot. When we were teens she went through a lot, alot of things I put her through. When she slowly started to accept me back to her life I was happy. I was happy to slowly be back into her heart. I thought she wouldn't take me back from all the things she put me through but she did, eventually."

"Love is a struggle."

"Where'd you get that?"

"My mind."

Jason looks at Alison, "Truth."

"Fine, my mom"

"Your mom?"

"Am I speaking English or am I speaking Chinese? Yes, my mom."

"Tell me about her."

"Nope, that seems a bit to personal for me. No offense, but I hardly know you. I don't like sharing that kind of informations with people."

"But, I'm telling you about my problem?"

"And, I am unfortunate enough to be listening to it."

"True."

"If you could say one word to her, what would you say?"

"That I love her."

"I said one word, telling her that you love takes more than one word."

"Fine, sorry."

"You would tell her, sorry?"

"Yeah."

"Explain."

"Because, she has had a tough life. When we were teens she did things that were beyond extraordinary. I put her through pain. I regret making her go through that pain."

"She is probably thankful for that."

"Why?"

"She is probably still strong as you described her, probably more stronger. Each challenge you have in life, makes you stronger."

"You speak of experience?"

"Once again, it's something personal."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"Well, I did things that I regret. I left her once, when she needed me the most."

"Cold."

"I know, but I was taken away, by force."

"But, she still left to suffer through the pain, right?"

"Yes. It just frustrates me. If I wouldn't have done my mistake, then she would've been with me, I would be waking up everyday, next to her."

"Things happen for a reason."

"Fate?"

"Yeah."

"I chose the wrong path."

"You don't deserve her."

"What?"

"You put her through pain. If she would've stayed with you she would still go through pain."

"No, she wouldn't."

"Realky? From that 'mistake' that you did it was the last straw for her, and you drive her away."

"I know."

"You shouldn't blame her, that she left you."

"I know, I wish she just hadn't left."

"She probably thinks of you."

"You sure of that."

"Duh, after all those things you put her through when you two were teens, and she takes you. That proves one thing, she loved you, probably not anymore, but she loved you once. You were just to dumb enough to embrace it. You were probably her first love, her first everything, I think."

"So, do you think she still loves me?"

"Well, yeah but as the saying says 'time heals the pain', that love might be fading away, but hey, that's just my opinion."

"You were right?"

"About?"

"Wise?"

"I know," Alison said she then looks at the sky and sees that it's starting to get dark.

"Yeah."

"It's late, I need to go home," Alison then gets up.

"Well, you are a interesting friend to talk to."

"Friends?"

"Then what are we, strangers?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"We are just two strangers, a cool girl and a moping 'man'. The man is telling the cool girl his 'emotions'. "

"Unfortunately, he is."

"We are just two strangers, who are just talking. Strangers that interacted with one another."

"Fine, whatever," Jason said with a smile. He feels comfortable talking to Alison. He hasn't felt comfortable talking to anyone about Reyna, until, his talk with Alison.

"Well, see you around, stranger."

"Whatever, will I see again to pour my heart out again?"

Alison rolls her eyes but smiles, "You need a therapist."

"I don't talk to strangers."

"You talked to me?"

"Yes, but you talked to me like a real person. A therapist would just listen and ask a lot questions. You snapped at me and told me your opinions on things."

"Glad I was help to you," Alison said sarcastically.

"Well, I'll be here to talk, again."

Alison raises an eyebrow, "To snap at you, again?"

"No, I just walk it out when I think of her."

"You walked a lot lately?"

"Yes, I've been thinking about her a lot, lately"

"I can tell."

"Whatever."

"Yeah, I'll consider dropping by."

"I'll be here."

"But remember, we are strangers that now have memories with one another because, they talked."

"Whatever."

"Watch it. Whatever. Bye," Alison then turns and is curious about that woman Jason said. Alison doesn't blame the woman for leaving.

* * *

**Thats was a lot of typing, but I enjoyed writing it. So what do you think on how Alison met Jason? Any grammar mistakes? If i do have grammar mistakes? I would appreciate it of you would nicely point it out. Review! XD**


	4. Chapter 4

**I hope you like it.**

* * *

_"Mothers - especially single mothers - are heroic in there efforts to raise our nation's children, but men must also take responsibility for their children and recognize the impact they have on their families' well being."_

_- Evan Bahy_

* * *

_Jason and Reyna were in the living room and as they watched a movie; the living room was big with light blue walls and portraits that hung, sea green color couch, and a wide plasma tv. It was Friday; it was date night for Jason and Reyna._

_Jason and Reyna were both dressed in sweatpants and Camp Jupiter t-shirt. Jason's head was on Reyna lap; Reyna ran her hands through Jason's blonde hair. Jason laughed._

_"What?" Reyna asked confused._

_"I'm a cat." Jason joked._

_"Because I am stroking your hair?" Reyna asked as she raised an eyebrow._

_"Yep." Jason said cheerfully._

_"Idiot," Reyna muttered and rolled her eyes._

_Jason sat up and looked at Reyna, "But we both know I'm your idiot." Jason said and closed the distance between them; he kissed her. The kiss was soft and passionate but at the same time it was urgent._

_"I wouldn't mind spending the rest of my life with you," Jason said as he pulled away._

_"I wouldn't mind that too." Reyna agreed._

_"I wouldn't mind," Jason said as he pulled a strand of hair behind Reyna's ear, "growing old with you someday or raising a family with you."_

_"With me?" Reyna asked._

_Jason smiled, "Who else?"_

_"Why not start?" Reyna whispered._

_"You sure?" Jason asked, "I don't want to push you."_

_"I'm sure." Reyna assured._

_"I'll still love you." Jason said._

_"I know." Reyna said. Jason kissed her forehead and then carried her, bridal style, towards the bedroom; their time together was precious to one another._

* * *

Reyna feels her eye sting; the only person she's ever been with is Jason; from her first time with Jason she becomes pregnant.

"I'm home." Alison said as she slams the door. Reyna quickly wipes her eyes.

"I was worried." Reyna said with concern in her voice.

"I'm independent." Alison said with sassiness in her voice.

"Lazy too.." Reyna said.

"I'm hungry." Alison complains.

"Shut up and eat." Reyna said as she hands Alison a plate of spaghetti with meatballs.

"Yum, meatballs are my favorite." Alison said.

"Grab a fork." Reyna said. Alison ignores her mom and grabs a meatball with her bare hands. "Alison!" Reyna exclaims.

"What did I do?" Alison ask innocently and then takes a bite of her meatball.

"That's gross." Reyna said as she grabs a fork.

"In my defense," Alison said as she wipes her mouth with a napkin but when she open her mouth again Reyna shoves a meatball. Alison chokes.

"Much better." Reyna said.

"Not cool." Alison complains.

"Eat." Reyna orders. Alison grabs her plate of food and sits down on the dining table; the dining table is rectangular shape with purple cloth and a fruit basket on top of it. Alison places her feet on the table.

"Alison, feet down." Reyna orders.

Alison sighs but agrees to take her feet down, "I'm tired." Alison complains.

"Did you go to the park?" Reyna ask.

"Yeah, I met a guy there." Alison said as she chews spaghetti.

"We have a rule about boys." Reyna said sternly.

"I know education first, stable job and then love. He isn't my age; he's old."

"How old?"

"Ancient old."

"Meaning?"

"Your age."

"I am not old as ancient times," Reyna said with a smile on her face.

"Your right, your the hottest mom on the block." Alison said with a smile.

"Alison!"

"Sorry! Anyways, I just bumped into him."

"And?"

"The moms were checking him out."

"Checking him out?"

"Yes, like when dads check you out."

"Alison!"

"I know it sounds gross to you but imagine me, your daughter, listening to those things when you have to go to my parent conferences."

"This is awkward."

"Well your young and many people think your're my sister!"

"True. What have I told you about talking to strangers?"

"He looked harmless and I was in an area where everyone else can see me talking to him. If he would've harmed me I would've karate chopped him."

"Terrifying." Reyna said sarcastically.

"Whatever. It was funny seeing the moms drool over him."

"Was it that amusing?"

"Yes!" Alison then eats another meatball.

"So what did you two talk about?"

"He told me a brief story about romantic love and told me that he did something that he regrets. He let her go; he screwed up bad."

"Do you know what he did?"

"Didn't want to tell me."

"Oh." Reyna said. Alison stands up with her plate now empty.

"Done." She said.

"Sink." Reyna said. When Reyna finish eating she stands up and walks to the sink; Alison is there washing the dishes. Reyna grabs a towel and Alison hands her a plate for Reyna to dry; washing the dishes after dinner is a ritual for Alison and Reyna.

"Mom?" Alison asks.

"Yes?" Reyna replies.

"Is it hard raising me?"

"It is at times." Reyna confesses. Alison nods. The dishes are done.

"Good night." Alison said and walks upstairs to her bedroom.

"It's hard raising you on my own. I was young when I became pregnant. I wonder what would've happened if I told Jason I was pregnant." Reyna whispers. Reyna turns off the lights and heads upstairs.

Alison walks into her bedroom; her bedroom has light orange with flower designs paint scatter on the wall, the walls have posters of Alison's favorite bands: Green Day, Sleeping with Sirens, and Never Shout Never. Her room has a big bed with two nightstands next to it with an ihome on top of one of them, in front of the bed is a chest and a tv, one side of her room has a big window, a closet that didn't have much clothes with a drawer, a bathroom and two red beanbags on the floor. Alison thought that her room looks simple; she thought the posters that hang on the wall help give the room charcter. Alison jumps on her bed and then lays down withs her stomach up.

"What a day." Alison said and drifts off to sleep.

Reyna walks into Alison's room to find her daughter fast asleep. She notices that Alison is still wearing her regular clothes but takes off her shoes.

"Good night." Reyna whispers and kisses her daughter's forehead.

Reyna changes to her pj and did her normal thinking: Jason. She wonders what he might be doing right now. Reyna then remembers when she found out she was pregnant:

_Reyna was vomiting a lot so she decided to visit a doctor; it's been 2 months since she left Jason._

_"Hello." Her doctor, Dr. Smith said. Dr. Smith was in his mid-forties, had gray hair and wore a blue shirt under his white coat._

_"Hello, doctor." Reyna replies._

_"Well we finished doing your blood tests."_

_"And?"_

_"Your pregnant."_

_"What?" Reyna asked._

_"Your pregnant." Dr. Smith repeated._

_"That can't be."_

_"Have you had any contact with a male?"_

_Reyna hesitated, "Yes."_

_"You've conceived two months ago."_

_"I'm two months along?"_

_"Yes. Congratulations." Dr. Smith said. Reyna's eyes filled with tears; she wanted to forget Jason not have his child._

_"Are you sure I'm pregnant?"_

_"Have you had vomiting?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Cramps?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Cravings?"_

_"Yes." Reyna said as she held back her tears._

_"There's always abortion." Dr. Smith suggested. Reyna instinctively placed a hand on her stomach. "It's just an options." Dr. Smith assured her._

_"I don't want to do it." Reyna said. She didn't want the baby inside her to be taken away, no matter how bad she hated the father._

_"Are you sure? Raising a child is not easy, it's tough." Dr. Smith said. I've faced tougher, Reyna thought._

_"I'll keep it." Reyna said._

_"Well, if you change your mind you can come back but within the two months; after the two months you can't abort anymore."_

_"I'm sure that won't happen."_

_Dr. Smith smiled, "I'm glad. Raising a child is hard but at the same time awarding, no matter how bad you want to rip your hair out sometimes."_

_"I'm up for the challenge." Reyna said confidently._

Reyna smiles. I'm doing a good job being a single mom, Reyna thought. Reyna then drifts off to sleep.

Reyna wakes up and does her morning routine: take a shower, brush her teeth, comb her hair and get dress. Reyna then goes downstairs and prepares breakfast.

Alison wakes up, stretches and does her morning routine: turns up the music from her ihome, brush her teeth, take a shower, grab clothes from her closet and dress with her usual black skinny jeans but with a dark blue long-sleeved shirt and beat up Converse. Alison heads downstairs.

"Morning." Alison said.

"Morning." Reyna said as she hands her a plate of eggs and toast; Alison walks to the table with her food. Reyna grabs the orange juice carton from the fridge, grabs two cup, pours juice in the cups and gives Alison a cup. Reyna and Alison eat in silence but after they finish they place the dishes in the sink.

"Grab your stuff." Reyna said.

"Okay," Alison said as she grabs her black backpack. Both Alison and Reyna walk to the garage and get it in the car; Reyna starts the car and drives away. When Reyna drives she sees someone's car with the hood up that is park against the road; the car is a Corvette.

"I got good feeling who it is. Keep driving." Alison instructs. Reyna ignores Alison and drives next to the Corvette and pulls down the window.

"Car trouble?" Reyna Ask.

"Yes." A voice said; it's Andrew Griffin. Andrew wears a dark suit with a red tie. Not bad, Alison thought.

"Looked what the cat dragged in." Alison said.

Reyna narrows her eyes on Andrew, "I think your're having car trouble."

"Really," Andrew said sarcastically, "I didn't know that."

"Watch it." Alison warns; she isn't very fond of Andrew.

"On your way to work?" Reyna ask.

"Yes, but my car broke down." Andrew said as looks at his car's engine. Alison looks at her mom.

"Don't you dare." Alison hisses.

"Will you need assistance?" Reyna ask.

"I see you're amused." Andrew said.

"It's rare to see you squirm." Reyna said.

"I need a lift." Andrew said.

"Ask nicely and I will consider it." Reyna said.

"Don't ask nicely." Alison said.

Andrew glares at Alison but then turns his attention back at Reyna, "Can you please give me a ride to work?"

"I'll be nice to you this time." Reyna said. Andrew then approaches the car; he approaches where Alison sits.

"Nope; sit in the back." Alison orders. Andrew grunts but agrees.

"So Andrew, what have your bachelor days been spent on?" Alison ask.

"Alison!" Reyna said.

"I do not know what you mean." Andrew said.

"Ladies." Alison reply.

"Alison." Reyna warn.

"You believe I'm a womanizer?" Andrew ask Alison.

"We're here." Reyna announce.

"What? I was getting to the good part." Alison complain,

"Sorry," Reyna apologize, "Have a nice day."

Alison looks at Andrew, "I'll karate chop you later." Alison said.

"Lovely." Andrew said sarcastically. Alison got off the car and left.

"Bastard." Reyna said.

"Nice," Andrew said as he move to the front seat.

"Whatever," Reyna mutter under her breath.

"You're single mother aren't you?" Andrew ask.

Reyna grips the steering wheel, "Is there a reason behind your curiosity?" Reyna ask.

"I've only seen you with Alison only." Andrew said.

"Yes I am a single mother; I am a proud single mother." Reyna said.

"You seem too young to be a mother to a 13 year old." Andrew said.

"I was young." Reyna said.

"In love?" Andrew ask.

"Why does this interests you?" Reyna said.

"How about the father?" Andrew ask as he ignores Reyna's question.

"Bastard," Reyna said, "Men do not realize the pain a mother goes through."

"It depends on the man." Andrew said.

"Let's get going," Reyna said as she drives; Reyna and Andrew arrive at work.

"Thank you," Andrew said softly.

Reyna enters the court room but lost in thought about what Andrew said; Reyna knows that since Jason isn't part of Alison's life it takes a toll on Alison. Would Jason be part of Alison's life if he knew I was pregnant, Reyna asks herself, or would he just leave and never look back.

"Hey," A male voice said; it's Luke.

"Oh, um, hi." Reyna said.

"Lost in thought?" He ask.

"Sort of." Reyna said.

"Well, we need you, right now." He said as he point at evidence that will be use against Mary Lee Stuart.

"I know." Reyna said.

"Reyna," Bianca said. "Did you arrive with Andrew Griffin?"

"Unfortunately, I did arrive with Andrew." Reyna said.

"How?" Luke ask.

"I saw the bastard having car trouble." Reyna said.

"You should've let him stay." Luke said.

"I agree with Luke." Bianca said.

"Do you hate him that much?" Reyna ask.

"It's not hate, Andrew just annoys me." Bianca said.

"He gets the ladies." Luke said.

"Your envious?" Reyna ask Luke.

"No. He just has this 'look at me I'm so hot' look on his face." Luke said.

"At least your honest." Bianca said.

"The court will begin." The judge announces.

"Alright, let's see how this will go." Bianca said.

"Agreed," Luke and Reyna said together.

* * *

**I'm sorry if you think this chapter sucks; I honestly think this isn't my best work.:/**

**I had to mention how Alison was 'reproduced' since I knew I was going to be ask sooner or later; be glad I didn't mention details.**

**I'm sorry if you think Reyna is out of character when she was pregnant; a pregnant women has mood swings.**

**You'll probably get to learn more about Andrew later.**

**In the next chapter you'll learn about Alison's school life.**

**Grammar? A review will be much appreciated!:D**


	5. Chapter 5

**I've been a bit under the weather that's why I haven't updated until now. Enjoy.**

* * *

_"We never really grow up, we only learn how to act in public."_

_-Bryan White_

* * *

Alison walks in the school. She sees two people she didn't want to see.

"Hey, Ali." Mackenzie said. Mackenzie has light brown hair, pale skin, a long thin nose, freckles on her cheek bones, thin lips and light brown eyes. She wears a pink long sleeve shirt, a light brown skirt, knee high socks, and black shoes; she looks innocent.

"Hey, Mack." Alison said innocently.

"You look like a dweeb today." Alexis comments. Alexis has red hair, tan skin, a small nose, high cheekbones, thin lips and light green eyes. She wears a light green v neck shirt, white shorts, and tan color high heels. Alexis use to be Alison's friend:

_"Yo." Alexis greeted. She wore baggy white pant, a baggy red shirt, and a yellow cap._

_"That red shirt brings out your hair color." Alison complimented._

_Alexis was shocked, "Thanks, toots." Alexis said sarcastically._

_"Your welcome." Alison replied sarcastically too._

_Alexis laughed, "That's what I get for having you as a best friend, right?"_

_"Yep." Alison said._

Everything change when Mackenzie came into the picture:

_"Where are you going?" Alison asked Alexis as they walked out Geometry class._

_Alexis jumped, "I'm going to hang out with Mackenzie." Alexis said._

_"I'll join you." Alison said._

_"No, I want to know Mackenzie more." Alexis said._

_"Oh." Alison said shocked._

_"Yeah, bye." Alexis said and walked away._

_"Bye, Alexis." Alison whispered._

Alexis never hanged out with Alison again. That happened in eighth grade; they are now in high school, ninth grade.

"I rather look like a dweeb than a stripper. Make sure you don't bend down, I'm not sure you want to show those cheeks." Alison winks.

"Goth girl." Mackenzie said.

"Thanks, I get that a lot from you guys." Alison said.

"Someone thinks there a comedian." Mackenzie said.

"Someone thinks there a douche bag. Oh, wait, you are a douche bag." Alison said.

"Learn some respects." Mackenzie said.

"Me?" Alison said with fake shock.

"Who else?" Alexis said.

"You." Alison tells Alexis.

The bell rings.

"Time to go to class." Mackenzie said.

"See you later, goth queen." Alexis said. They walk away.

Alison takes a deep breath. She walks upstairs to her first period class, Algebra 2. When Alison walks into her class she trips.

"Are you okay?" A voice ask; it's Nick Williams. Nick Williams has chocolate-brown hair, tan skin, thin lips, square jaw, and light blue eyes; he's the guy many girls drool over. His girlfriend is Mackenzie. He wears a white shirt under his black leather jacket and black pants. He looks like a bad boy.

"She's okay." Mackenzie said sweetly.

"Give me your hand." Nick said as he holds out his hand.

"I'm good." Alison said as she gets up.

"I told you." Mackenzie said as she grabs Nick's hand; she kisses him. Alison tries hard not to show her disgust. Nick pulls away and looks at Alison.

"Okay." Alison said and walks to her seat; she sits in the back of the room.

"Hey, Alison," Jean said. Jean has light brown skin, dark hair, and black eyes. She wears a white shirt, and jeans. Jean is the first friend Alison has in high school.

"What's up?" Alison greets.

"I saw you fall." Jean said.

"Really?" Alison said.

"You would've grabbed his hand." Jean said.

"Why?" Alison ask.

"He's hot." Jean said.

"You like him." Alison said.

"He's hot." Jean repeats.

"Whatever." Alison said as she rolls her eyes.

"I think he likes you." Jean whispers.

"Nope. Do you know who his girlfriend is? Mackenzie." Alison said.

"So," Jean said as she furrows her brows, "That's the best kind of revenge."

"Yeah, seducing her boyfriend." Alison said.

"It's simple." Jean said.

"Amuse me." Alison said.

Jean flips her hair and poses, "Hi, my name is Alison." Jean said in a Southern accent.

Alison laughs, "I do not talk like that."

"Fine," Jean said as she crosses her legs, "Hi, big boy." Jean said in a husky voice.

Alison burst out laughing. Nick hears her and looks at her.

"What?" Alison said.

"I just wanted to hear where that musical laugh came from." Nick said.

"Is this the time that I blush?" Alison said seriously. Nick smiles and turns away.

"That's right, turn away." Alison mutters. Alison sees Mackenzie give her the evil eye. "I'll turn that evil eye to a black eye." Alison mutters.

"Can I join?" Jean ask. Jean doesn't like Mackenzie very much; Mackenzie is mean to Jean too.

"The more the merrier." Alison said.

* * *

"Mary Lee Stuart, did you kill your husband?" Reyna ask. Mary sits next to Andrew; she opens her mouth but then closes it.

"It is wise to keep your mouth shut." Reyna comments.

"The court will let Andrew Griffin speak." The judge said.

"Thank you," Andrew said as he stand up from his chair, "Mary Lee Stuart is innocent; she did not kill her husband. How can a women who loves her husband kill him? There is no evidence. About the glove, it's just coincident. On the day Mary found her husband dead she went to golf. In golf a glove is used. Mary still wore her glove when she found Billy on the bed; she grabbed Billy when he called him. It was a touch. A touch." Andrew said.

"I see it in a way of: Mary had her glove on when she killed Billy." Reyna said.

"The court will take a five-minute break." The judge interrupts.

"You are not a bad lawyer." Andrew compliments.

"I do what I think is the right thing." Reyna said.

"Mary did not kill Billy." Andrew said.

"She did." Luke interrupts.

"Was I talking to you?" Andrew ask.

"You are now." Luke said.

"Do not behave as a child." Andrew said.

"Me? I act professional. I don't act like a chick magnet." Luke said.

"Me?" Andrew ask.

"You are the only Andrew in this court room, right?" Luke ask.

"Quit it." Andrew said.

"Quit it." Luke imitates.

"Shut up." Andrew growls.

"I'm so scared." Luke said as he fake trembles.

"Both of you quit the childish behavior." Reyna orders. Luke and Andrew stare at each other.

"I'm not the only one that hold grudges, right, Luke?" Bianca ask. Luke looks at Bianca.

"It's a courtroom; you can get charge here if you two fight." Beckendorf said.

"The court will continue." The judge announces.

Luke looks at Reyna, "Let me take charge." Luke tells her.

"Be my guess." Reyna said. She sits between Bianca and Beckendorf.

"Get ready to rumble." Beckendorf whispers.

"I'll cut the chit-chat," Luke said as he stares at Andrew, "Mary killed Billy. Glove. Glove has traces of his blood. The murder plot is simple: Mary woke up, grabbed a glove, grabbed a knife, and she stabbed him. After she was sure Billy died, she bleached the glove in bleach and went to the golf court and 'played' golf; she came back from golf and called the cops. She played innocent. She believes she can escape, she can not; I will do everything in my power to not let her free. A murderer can't be free to walk on this streets."

"I disagree with you, Mr. Castellan," Andrew said politely and continues, "Mary did not kill her husband. I call as my first witness, Mrs. Cheerios." A plump woman with blonde hair, dark eyes, and white skin stand up from the crowd; she wears a white coat and a light blue dress. She walks to the witness stand and sits. A police officer walk up to her with a book. Mrs. Cheerios takes the oath.

"You are the person who examined Billy's body, correct?" Andrew ask.

"Correct." Mrs. Cheerios said.

"Did you find any traces of DNA on Billy?" Andrew ask Mrs. Cheerios.

"Yes, I did." Mrs. Cheerios reveals. The audience gasps.

"Was it Mrs. Stuarts's DNA?" Andrew ask.

"No." Mrs. Cheerios replies.

"Who's DNA did you find?" Andrew ask.

"An unidentified male." Mrs. Cheerios said.

"We need to find who did it." Bianca whispers.

"How about the gardener?" Reyna whispers.

"The lover?" Beckendorf whispers.

"Yup." Bianca said.

"Your dad is Hades can't you ask who did it?" Beckendorf whispers.

"I can't ask him everything." Bianca said.

"What?" Reyna said. She isn't listening to them.

"I said, how the Hades are we going to get the gardeners DNA?" Beckendorf said.

"We'll manage." Reyna said.

"That's all I want to say." Andrew said.

"Can I ask Mrs. Cheerios questions?" Luke ask the judge.

"You may." The judge said.

"Mrs. Cheerios, did you do a full body examination?" Luke ask.

"Of course." Mrs. Cheerios said.

"What can you determine as the murder weapon?" Luke ask.

"A knife approximately 5 or 6 inches long." Mrs. Cheerios said.

"Mary, where exactly did you touch your husband?" Luke ask Mary.

"His shoulder." Mary said.

"Where was the exact spot that you tested when you found the glove on?" Luke ask.

"Around the stab wounds." Mrs. Cheerios said.

"What about the unidentified male DNA?" Luke ask.

"DNA found on around the stab wounds as well." Mrs. Cheerios said.

"Bingo. Two people killed Mr. Stuart." Beckendorf whispers.

"Question is who did it?" Bianca ask.

"Our first suspect is the gardener." Reyna said.

* * *

The bell rings; it is the end of first period. Alison gathers her stuff and waits for Jean.

"Any day." Alison said.

Jean smiles, "Hold your panties."

"I am." Alison replies. Together, Jean, and Alison walk out of the class. Mackenzie is leaning against a locker.

"What are you waiting for?" Alison ask.

Mackenzie looks at Alison, "Stay away from Nick." She warns.

"Don't worry, I don't want him." Alison said.

"You fell to grab his attention." Mackenzie said.

"I fell because I am clumsy." Alison said.

"Excuses." Mackenzie said.

"It's not." Alison said.

"Nick will never leave me." Mackenzie said.

"So you have nothing to worry about." Jean mutters.

Mackenzie stares at Jean, "Your disgusting. A woman needs to dress properly."

"A woman does not show any skin." Alison points out.

"Whatever, Nick will never leave this." Mackenzie points at her body.

"Ew." Alison comments. Jean laughs.

"I, at least, have a boyfriend." Mackenzie said.

"Good job," Alison said as she holds a thumb up.

"You better watch it." Mackenzie warns and walks away. Alison walks after Mackenzie but Jean grabs her arm.

"She isn't worth it." Jean said.

"Just one black eye." Alison pleads.

"No." Jean said and releases Alison's arm. "Let's go to class." Jean said. The next class is Biology.

"Good thing Mackenzie isn't in this class." Alison said.

"True." Jean agrees.

"Hey." A voice said behind them; it's Nick Williams.

"Hi?" Jean said confuse.

"Alison right?" Nick ask Alison.

"Yep." Alison said.

"Jean?" Nick ask Jean.

"Yeah," Jean flutters. Alison snickers.

"Listen, I'm sorry Mackenzie acted that way." Nick apologizes.

"Okay?" Alison said confuse.

"She's just insecure." Nick said as he places a hand on his chocolate-brown hair. Jean looks at him in a way that said I-want-to-touch-your-hair.

"Mackenzie insecure?" Alison ask.

"She hasn't told me but I sense that she is." Nick said.

"That is no reason to bully others." Jean said quickly.

"What?" Nick ask.

"Nothing." Alison said. Nick, Alison and Jean walk together to Biology class; they got stares when they enter the class.

"What?" Alison ask them. Alison sits in the back with Jean. Nick sits with his crew, but then gets up, and sits in the back with Alison and Jean.

"Can I help you?" Alison ask.

"I don't want to get stares." Nick said.

"You mean drools?" Jean ask.

Nick laughs, "Yes."

"You'll still get stares." Alison said.

"Why?" Nick ask.

"You are sitting next to a nerd and a girl who everyone thinks is goth." Jean clarifies.

"Correct." Alison said.

"I'm sure it can be worse." Nick said.

"Like?" Alison said.

"Sitting next to girls who will stare at you the whole time thinking to themselves, Nick is so hot." Nick said.

Jean and Alison smile.

"I'm surprise." Nick said.

"On?" Alison ask.

"How maturely you guys behave with Mackenzie." Nick said. Alison and Jean burst out laughing.

"Thank you, it takes skill." Alison said.

"Serious restraining." Jean said.

"We are civilized." Alison said.

"Sure we are." Jean said.

"We just know how to act in public." Alison said.

* * *

"I remember that I touched my husbands wounds." Mary said.

"She changes her story." Bianca points out.

"I know." Beckendorf said.

"You can't not keep changing you stories, Mary." Luke said.

"I really remember." Mary protests.

"The gardener is your lover?" Luke ask her. Mary is silent.

"The court will continue their case tomorrow. Thank you Mrs. Cheerios. The court shall be dismiss." The judge said. Everyone in the audience stand up and leave.

"We need DNA from the gardener." Beckendorf announces.

"Yes, we do." Reyna agrees.

"Question is, how do we find the gardener?" Luke ask.

"Ask the state for files on the address of the gardener." Reyna suggests.

"Sure, do we ask today?" Bianca ask.

"Yes." Reyna said.

"Great," Luke said as he claps his hands together, "We get the files and go follow it."

"I need to pick up Alison from school." Reyna said.

"Sure, drop her off, and come back." Beckendorf said.

Reyna gathers her things, "I'll be back." Reyna leaves the courtroom. She walks to her car to find Andrew leaning against it.

"What do you want?" Reyna ask.

"I need a ride." Andrew said.

"Ask Mrs. Stuart." Reyna suggest.

"I would've but she ask too much about her case." Andrew said.

"Seduce someone to give you a ride." Reyna said.

"That's why, you." Andrew said.

"If you try that, you are dead." Reyna warns him.

"Fine, just give me a ride home." Andrew said. Reyna takes a deep breath.

"You are not leaving until I give you a ride home, right?" Reyna ask.

"Yup." Andrew said.

Reyna gives up, "Get in the car." Reyna said. Andrew gets into the car.

* * *

Alison's classes pass by quickly. Alison, Jean, and Nick were cracking up in Biology. Alison smiles:

_"Would you rather kiss a hippo or kiss a toilet?" Jean asked Alison._

_"A hippo." Alison said freely._

_"You rather kiss a hippo's butt?" Nick asked._

_"Jean didn't say where exactly." Alison pointed out._

_"Fine, you kiss a hippo's butt." Jean said._

_"You can't change it anymore." Alison said._

_"Yes, I can." Jean said._

_"Nope." Alison said._

_"Yup." Jean said._

_"If you think about kissing a toilet doesn't sound like a good idea." Nick said._

_"Really? You kiss Mackenzie." Jean whispered. Alison laughed._

_"Jean, go kiss a toilet." Nick said._

_"Nope." Jean said._

_"Nick, would you rather massage Mrs. Sweeny's feet or a give her a back massage?" Alison asked Nick. Mrs. Sweeny was there Biology teacher; she was old with wrinkles, thick glasses, and white hair._

_Nick shivered, "That's dirty." _

_"I know answer the question." Alison said._

_"I can't believe I am saying this; I would massage Mrs. Sweeny's feet." Nick confessed._

_"Ew." Jean said._

_"Indeed." Nick agreed._

_"I can already imagine the smell of rotten eggs." Alison said. Jean and Nick laughed._

_"Jean, Alison and Nick." Mrs. Sweeny said._

_"Yes." Nick said._

_"Mr. Williams, pay attention and do not try to flirt with the young ladies next to you." Mrs. Sweeny said._

_"We were not flirting with him." Alison corrected._

_"We were joking around." Jean said._

_"Pay attention." Mrs. Sweeny said. Alison, Nick, and Jean continued laughing._

The bell rings; time to go home. Alison is in English class. She packs up and waits for Jean.

"Lady, you take long." Alison complains.

"Thanks for the compliment." Jean said sarcastically. They walk to the front entrance of the school. Alison sees her mom's car.

"I have to go." Alison said.

"Bye." Jean said. Alison walks to her mom's car. She looks at the person next to her mom; Andrew Griffin. Alison goes to the back seat of the car.

"Hi, mom." Alison said.

"How was school?" Reyna ask.

"It was cool." Alison said.

"That's nice." Reyna said.

"How come Mr. Griffin is here?" Alison ask.

"I needed a ride home." Andrew said.

"Can't you seduce someone to give me a ride home?" Alison ask him.

"I asked him the exact thing." Reyna said.

"Since he's in the car, he should answer my questions." Alison said.

"What kind of questions?" Andrew ask.

"The questions I asked you this morning." Alison said.

"Alison." Reyna warns.

"You mean on how my bachelor days been spent on?" Andrew ask.

"Exactly." Alison said.

"You don't have to answer that question." Reyna said.

Andrew ignores her, "I do normal things a bachelor man would do."

"Like?" Alison ask.

"Snowboarding, Africa, and getting in trouble once in a while." Andrew said.

"With the cops?" Alison ask. Andrew shrugs.

"Alison, I need to work late." Reyna informs Alison.

"Why?" Alison and Andrew ask.

"On my case." Reyna said.

"I would love for you to search for more evidence." Andrew said.

"Douche bag." Alison mutters.

"What?" Andrew ask.

"Nothing." Alison said brightly.

"I'll probably work late." Reyna said.

Alison remembers something, "Okay."

"We're here." Reyna said in front of their house. Alison gets off the car.

"Bye." Alison said.

"Call me if you need anything." Reyna said and drives off.

"Bye, Sir Buttface!" Alison yells at Andrew.

* * *

"Lovely child." Andrew said sarcastically.

"Where do you live?" Reyna ask.

"Up the road ahead." Andrew instructs.

Reyna keeps driving as Andrew instructs.

"Here." Andrew said. The house is color sea green, two stories high, and green grass on the front lawn.

"Not bad." Reyna compliments on the house.

"Would you like to enter?" Andrew ask. A chill runs down Reyna's spine.

"No." Reyna said darkly.

"Not in that way." Andrew said.

"It better have not been that way." Reyna warns.

"I didn't mean it that way." Andrew said.

"It better not." Reyna said.

"Thank you for the ride home." Andrew said politely.

"Is this the time I say 'Your welcome.' " Reyna said.

Andrew smiles, "By the way you look beautiful in your suit."

"It's not working." Reyna said.

"What?" Andrew ask.

"Seducing." Reyna said.

Andrew chuckles, "It will."

"Nope." Reyna said. Andrew got off the car and left.

* * *

Alison walks to the park to see Jason again. She walks to the hill and sees him there.

"Stalker." Alison said. Jason wear dark blue jeans and a purple shirt.

Jason chuckles, "Great to see you again."

"Not so sure about seeing you." Alison said.

"Whatever." Jason said.

"Why aren't you on the playground?" Alison ask.

"Why would I be there?" Jason ask.

"So the moms can drool over you." Alison said,

Jason smiles, "I feel uncomfortable when they do that."

"My best guess is that they think you look 'hot' whatever you do." Alison said.

"It wouldn't be cute if they saw me butt naked." Jason said.

Alison covers her eyes, "I don't want that image."

Jason chuckles, "Sorry."

Alison uncovers her eyes and sits on the grass, "So you came back to ask more advice to the love doctor."

Jason rolls his eyes, "Yes, I need your help, Dr. Alison."

"About what?" Alison ask as she touched her fake beard.

"I've dreamt of her like crazy." Jason said.

"You are crazy." Alison mutters.

"I heard that." Alison said.

"Great. What kind of dreams?" Alison ask.

Jason takes a deep breath.

* * *

**I bet many of you expected to know what kind of dreams he has had. What do you think about Mackenzie and Alexis? What about Nick and Jean? What will Reyna, Luke, Bianca and Beckendorf find? **

**Grammar? As always, leave a review!;)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry that its been a while since I've updated.**

* * *

_"Dreams will get you nowhere, a good kick in the pants will take you a long way." _

_-Baltasar Gracian_

* * *

"I dreamt:

I saw her on a bed with her hair messy, flushed cheeks, pinkish lips, and she was panting. She looked beautiful. She had a newborn in her arms; she looked happy holding the baby. Who is the father, I asked myself. I was jealous of the man who fathered her child.

'Can I hold the baby?' A man asked. I didn't know who was the man, the father I suppose. She nodded, and gave the baby to him. I couldn't see the man's face; I wanted to see her face only.

The scene changed. A white dress. She wore a white dress. The dress was tight fitted white pearls, lace and the best jewelry of all, her face. She looked breathtaking.

I was wearing a tux; I hardly ever wear a tux. I was at an altar, and everyone I knew was there. Music started playing and she came walking towards me with her veil, and a bouquet of yellow roses in her hand. We held hands, and said our bows. I lifted the veil from her face and was about to kiss her, but the scene changed. I'll admit; I cursed.

I was still at the altar, but there was another guy there. The music began and she walked to the end of the altar. I thought she was walking towards me, but she passed right by me; my heart shattered. She walked to the other guy, and said their vows. I couldn't see the man's face.

I saw her again, but at the park pushing a child on a swing. The child was a little girl, with black hair, and I couldn't see her face. She pushed the child on the swing; the little girl squealed with laughter.

'Higher!' The little girl yelled.

'Okay.' A man said.

She laughed."

"That's interesting." Alison said.

"I just hope that she's happy." Jason said.

"Do you think the guy that held the baby was the father?" Alison ask.

"Yes." Jason said sadly.

"At least, she found someone who loves her." Alison said.

"I wish it was me." Jason said.

"Have you even tried finding her again?" Alison ask.

"I just don't know where to start. I just told you the happy part of my dream." Jason said.

"Lets hear it Romeo." Alison said.

Jason chuckles, " I dreamt:

She was crying on a bed.

'After all these years, you came back. I was happy, and when you came, my world went crashing down.' She whispered."

"If she was listening, I bet she would be thinking that you're a stalker." Alison said.

Jason chuckles, "I don't know how she would react."

"What did you do to drive her away?" Alison ask.

Jason's face darkens, "I just regret it."

"I have a question." Alison said.

"Like?" Jason ask.

"Do you have any fantasies?" Alison ask innocently.

Jason laughs, "What kind of question is that?"

"Some guys think of _things, _and I thought you were one of them." Alison said.

Jason blushes, "I don't know what to say about that."

"Yes or no." Alison said as she wiggles her eyebrows.

"No comment." Jason said.

Alison smiles, "Jason, I never knew you were like that."

"Why am I having this type of conversation with you?" Jason ask.

"Exotic?" Alison ask.

Jason looks at the sky, "Your gross."

Alison laughs, "I was just curious."

* * *

Reyna thinks about Andrew's words, _'By the way, you look beautiful in your suit.' _Andrew's words rings in Reyna's mind. She still feels the shivers running down her spine.

Reyna drives back to work and sees Luke, Bianca, and Beckendorf waiting for her. Reyna pauses the car and Luke, and Beckendorf run towards her. Luke gets in the car first; Luke sits next to Reyna.

"Not fair." Beckendorf said.

"It is." Luke said.

"Beckendorf, get in the backseat." Bianca said as she sits in the backseat of Reyna's car. Beckendorf sighs, and he gets into the car.

"Where does the gardener live?" Reyna ask.

"He lives in Oxnard." Luke said.

"Lets get going." Reyna said.

* * *

"Still gross." Jason comments.

"Do you dream about her often?" Alison ask.

"Yeah." Jason said.

"How long?" Alison ask.

"It's been 14 years." Jason said sadly.

"After she left what did you do? Did you ever had the idea to search for her?" Alison ask.

"I searched for her, and everywhere I looked she wasn't there. She took everything; she took my heart with her. Her name, and her broken heart has haunted me for the last 14 years." Jason said.

Alison looks at Jason's fingers, "You're not married?"

"Nope." Jason said.

"Have you ever been married?" Alison ask.

"Nope." Jason said.

"Any girls that you had a fling with?" Alison ask.

"No." Jason said.

"A one night stand?" Alison ask.

"Again with these types of conversations?" Jason ask.

Alison raises her hand in surrender, "You, my friend, are a hopeless romantic."

"Yes, I've been told by many." Jason said.

"I agree with your amigos. Do you want to see her again?" Alison ask.

"Yes, I want to see her again, but I'm not sure she wants to see me." Jason said.

"You shouldn't blame her for not wanting to see you again." Alison whispers.

"Why do you take her side?" Jason ask.

"You did something that drove her away; I don't know what you did. Based on the things you told me from last time, you confessed you put her through a lot of things. I think you had it coming. A girl can take so much pain, but when she has enough, she leaves." Alison said.

"This is similar from the last conversation we had." Jason points out.

"Yes, I still take her side even though I don't know her." Alison said.

Jason's stomach growls, "I'm hungry."

"Jeez, I didn't know that." Alison rolls her eyes.

"There's a pizza shop in the corner." Jason said.

"Oh." Alison said.

"I'll invite you for some pizza." Jason said.

"Fine, but I will ask a lot of questions." Alison said.

"You all ready do," Jason said as he stands up.

* * *

"Do you think we might find a serial killer?" Luke ask.

"Yeah, a serial killer who is a gardener." Beckendorf said sarcastically.

"You two are such children." Bianca said.

"Thank you." Luke said.

"We're here." Reyna announces as she stops the car.

"Dang, he lives here?" Luke said. The house is two stories high, and with dark brown paint. The lawn was green with many dead flowers like: roses, sunflowers, daisies, orchids, and jasmines.

"That's creepy." Beckendorf said.

Reyna steps out of the car and looks at her friends, "We have a job to do." She reminds them.

"Okay." Bianca said as she steps out of the car.

"I really hope he doesn't have an ax with him." Luke said.

"Luke, did you drink kool-aid yesterday, and watched a horror movie?" Beckendorf ask. Reyna thinks about Dakota; the last time she saw Dakota was 14 years ago. Reyna remembers the last time she saw him:

_"Reyna, where are you going?" Dakota asked._

_"I'm leaving." Reyna said as she grabbed her bags._

_"Why?" Dakota asked._

_"I'm going off to college." Reyna answered._

_"You can go to college here." A voice said, Bobby._

_"I want to be in the outside world." Reyna said__._

_"Reyna, are your eyes red?" Dakota asked._

_"It's nothing." Reyna said._

_"Are you sure?" Bobby asked._

_"I am. I have to leave." Reyna said._

_"Hope to see you again." Dakota said._

_"Me too." Bobby said._

_"One day." Reyna said hopefully._

_"Time heals the pain." Dakota said._

_"Jason must've done something really bad." Bobby said._

_Reyna smiled, but a sad smile._

_Dakota held out his hand, and Reyna shook his hand._

_"We had our times: punishing us when we sneaked into the girls' Baths, me and Bobby being photographers, Halloween candy, and seeing Octavian's head in horse poo."_

_"I am still upset about you sneaking into the Baths." Reyna said._

_"Bobby had the idea!" Dakota yelled._

_"It was a great idea." Bobby said._

_Reyna's lips slightly turned upwards. Bobby held out his hand, and Reyna shook it._

_"See you in the long run, captain." Bobby said._

_"Be good." Reyna said._

_"That's too much to ask." Bobby said._

_"Bye." Reyna said as she grabbed her bag._

_"Okay." Dakota said._

_Reyna slowly walked away._

_"Bye Reyna daughter of Bellona, and praetor of Rome!" Bobby and Dakota yelled._

_Reyna's eyes stung._

Idiots, Reyna thought.

"Yes, I did." Luke whispers.

"Please, don't fight." Reyna pleads.

"Lets walk." Bianca said.

Reyna, Bianca, Luke, and Beckendorf walk to the porch. The porch is black with couches, and skeleton pillows. The porch squeaks as they step on it. The door is cherry wood with spiral designs.

"The house feels gloomy." Bianca comments.

Reyna knocks on the door, and she hears no sound from the inside.

"Open the door Luke." Beckendorf whispers to Luke.

"I haven't done that in years." Luke whispers back.

"Bianca, do you have a bobby pin?" Luke ask.

"Sure," Bianca said as she grabs a bobby pins from her hair, and hands it to Luke.

"Stand back." Luke said as he goes on his knees, and inserts the bobby pin inside the door. Reyna looks around to see another entrance; she sees an open door at the side of the house.

"There's an entrance right there." Reyna points to the door.

"Well then," Luke said as he stands up, "lets go to the door." The door was black, and in the middle a sign that said, "You are entering to your death."

"That's creepy." Beckendorf comments.

"I like the sign." Bianca said.

"We are risking getting the cops called on us." Luke warns.

"Lets go." Reyna said as she enters. As Reyna enters she sees a path with green grass, and scatter bones.

"This guy has a liking to death." Bianca said. Reyna follows the path with the others behind her; she walks to a backyard with green grass, dead trees, and dead flowers. At the corner of the backyard is a man on his knees.

"Mr. Hernandez?" Reyna calls out. The man turns around. The man has tan skin, a long angle nose with a diamond piercing, a big forehead, black hair with braids and tattoos on his arms, neck, and hands. The man wears black skinny jeans, a tight black muscle shirt, combat boots, a belt with skeleton designs, biker gloves, and rings on his fingers.

"Who are you?" The man narrows his eyes.

* * *

Jason and Alison walk to the corner, and walk into a pizza shop called "Munchkin Pizza". A waitress comes with pale skin, dark brown eyes, and dark brown hair that's tie in a ponytail. She wears jeans, and a red cotton shirt. Alison sees the waitress run to the back and grabs a mirror, and looks at her reflection while retouching her make-up.

"Hi." The waitress squeaks.

"Table for two." Jason said.

"Oh," The waitress said as she looks at Alison.

"Yeah." Alison said.

"Come with me," the waitress said as she walks. She takes them to a table with red leather chairs. "Have a seat."

"Thanks." Jason said.

The waitress hands Jason two menus, and their hands touch, "Oops. Sorry." The waitress said flirtatiously.

"It's fine." Jason said.

"I-I'll be right back." The waitress said shyly, and walks away.

"She's probably having a panic attack in the back." Alison said.

"It was just a touch." Jason said.

"A touch from a god is what she is probably thinking." Alison said.

"Whatever." Jason said as he hands Alison a menu.

"Why didn't she for me a menu? Her touching your hands was not an accident." Alison said.

"I feel uncomfortable with this." Jason said as he examines the menu.

"I'm amuse with this." Alison said.

The waitress comes back, "What will it be?"

"I'll have one pepperoni pizza with coke." Jason said.

"I'll have the same as him." Alison said.

"Okay, so one pepperoni with coke, is that all?" The waitress ask.

"I'll have the same as him." Alison repeats.

"I'll be right back." The waitress said.

"Yo, booboo." Alison hollers.

The waitress turns, and looks at Alison, "Yes?"

"I ordered the same thing as Prince Charming. Do you know who Prince Charming is? Prince Charming is the guy you been drooling on. I saw you in the back putting on make-up trying to look pretty." Alison snaps.

The waitress takes a deep breath, "Is that all?"

"Yes, make it quick." Alison said.

"Okay," the waitress said in a fake cheerful voice, and walks away.

"Prince Charming?" Jason ask confuse.

"I know, she was drooling over you. You have a affect on women, and I don't know what they see in you. I see a hopeless romantic bleating himself up for a girl he lost, and an idiot who hasn't tried hard to find her." Alison said.

"I know." Jason said.

"Have you had dreams that you found her?" Alison ask.

"Yes." Jason said.

"Things don't happen by magic, make them happen. Put on your big boy pants, and start searching." Alison said.

"I don't know where to start." Jason said.

"I know where to kick you: in your rear end." Alison said.

Jason shifts in his chair, "You wouldn't literally do that, right?"

Alison grins, "Don't underestimate me."

* * *

Reyna narrows her eyes, "The question is, who are you?"

The man grins, "This is my property."

Reyna looks at the man from toe to head, "I figured it out."

Luke clears his throat, "Are you Mr. Hernandez?"

"Idiot, I am not Mr. Hernandez." The man said.

Luke clenches his fist, "Then who are you."

"My name is Mr. Sunshine." Mr. Sunshine said.

"You certainly live up to the name." Luke snaps.

"Ignore my friend. Does Mr. Hernandez live in this residence?" Reyna ask.

"Yes, he's in the garage." Mr. Sunshine said.

"Oh." Reyna said.

"I'll go get him." Mr. Sunshine said as he walks away.

"That guy rubs me the wrong name." Bianca said.

"No kidding." Beckendorf said.

Mr. Sunshine comes back with a man behind him. The man has dark ginger hair in an Afro, tan skin, and dark eyes. He wears a white shirt, red jeans, and green shoes.

"I am Mr. Hernandez." Mr. Hernandez said.

Reyna hold out her hand, "Nice to meet you."

Mr. Hernandez takes Reyna's hand, and firmly shakes it. "Is there a problem?"

"Do you know any information about Mary Lee Stuart?" Reyna ask.

"Yes, I work for her." Mr. Hernandez said.

"Do you still work for her?" Beckendorf ask.

"Yes." Mr. Hernandez replies.

"Are you aware of Mr. Stuart's death?" Reyna ask.

"I am informed by the media, and by Mrs. Stuart herself." Mr. Hernandez said.

"Are you having an affair with Mrs. Stuart?" Luke ask.

"No." Mr. Hernandez denies.

"I suppose you are well informed that on the autopsy of Mr. Stuart two people's DNA were identified: one male and Mrs. Stuart?" Luke ask.

Mr. Hernandez eyes are wide open, "Are you concluding, I am the male suspect?"

"Where were you on the day Mr. Hernandez died?" Bianca ask.

"I was working at the backyard of the Stuarts' home." Mr. Hernandez said.

"Didn't hear any yells?" Beckendorf ask.

"No." Mr. Hernandez said.

"You have your answers." Mr. Sunshine said.

"Did you help kill Mr. Stuart?" Reyna ask.

"No." Mr. Hernandez said.

"You killed him by yourself?" Luke ask.

"I didn't kill the man!" Mr. Hernandez exclaims.

"Leave my _partner_ alone." Mr. Sunshine said.

"Partner?" Luke ask.

"Do you have a problem with that?" Mr. Sunshine said.

"He does not." Reyna said.

"He better not." Mr. Sunshine warns.

"Mr. Hernandez, don't leave town." Reyna said.

"Very well. It will be a dream if it is discovered who killed Mr. Stuart." Mr. Hernandez said.

"It's best to stop dreaming, and start doing the work." Luke said.

* * *

"I know, I should not underestimate Alison." Jason said.

"Don't forget it." Alison said.

The waitress comes back with a pizza and a coke; she gives the slice of pizza, and the coke to Jason.

"Where's mine?" Alison ask. This lady is starting to tick me off, Alison thought.

"It's coming." The waitress said in fake cheerfulness. Alison sighs in frustration. "Will there be anything else?" She ask Jason.

"Yes, I need the other pizza, and the coke brought out." Jason orders.

"I'll be back." The waitress said, and walks away.

"Really? You could've bashed your eyelashes, and she still would've walked fast to fetch that pizza." Alison said.

"No, I feel uncomfortable with the attention she gives me." Jason said.

Aluson rolls her eyes, "This is worst than the moms at the park checking you out."

"I agree." Jason said with a sigh.

"I understand." Alison said.

"Understand?" Jason said.

"Are females always like this?" Alison ask.

"Not always." Jason said.

"When aren't they like this?" Alison ask.

"Yes, females behave the same, but not a lot. I have a friend that many drool over." Jason said.

"What's his name?" Alison ask.

"Percy Jackson." Jason said.

Alison chuckles.

"Why did you chuckle?" Jason ask.

"Because two 'hot' guys in a room, that's double the drool." Alison said.

Jason smiles, "True."

"Your lady probably got tired of that." Alison points out.

"Who?" Jason ask.

"Your girl, the one that you constantly dream about." Alison said.

"Do you think so? When we went out, I only had eyes for her." Jason said.

"I believe you, but probably, like me, she got ignored like other, and watched others trying to flirt with you." Alison said.

The waitress comes with the slice of pizza, and coke. "Here you go." The waitress said as she hands Jason the food.

"For the love of Pluto." Alison mutters. "Where's your _wife_?" Alison ask. Jason furrows his brows in confusion, and then smiles when he understands the message.

"_She's _at home." Jason said.

"Will that be all? I'll be glad to do _anything_?" The waitress said.

"Excuse me, I'm right here. Get back to work, flirt when your shift is done, but not with him; he has standards." Alison snaps.

"Someone needs manners." The waitress said.

"Someone needs to know, hands off the customer." Alison shot back.

"Okay!" Jason exclaims. "That's all." Jason told the waitress.

"Okay, let me know of you need anything, _anything_." The waitress said, and left.

"She needs something: a brain." Alison said.

Jason gives Alison the pizza and coke, "Sorry about that."

Alison shrugs, "That's okay." She reminds me of Mackenzie, Alison thought.

"You have a sharp tongue." Jason said.

Alison bites her pizza, "Comebacks come naturally."

"I noticed." Jason said then bites his pizza.

"If we want her to dress like a monkey do you think she would do that?" Alison ask.

"Bad idea." Jason said.

"Goody two shoes." Alison mutters.

"Am not." Jason said.

"Are too." Alison said.

"What are you guys fighting about?" A male voice said. It is a man with with curly black hair, and red stain lips. The man wear a neon blue shirt and gray loose jeans.

"Dakota." Jason greets.

"Hi, Grace." Dakota said.

"This is Alison." Jason introduces.

"What's up?" Dakota said.

"Great." Alison said.

"She looks like Thalia." Dakota tells Jason.

"I know." Jason said.

"I don't have wrinkles." Alison said.

"We know." Dakota said. Dakota takes out a bottle of kool-aid.

"Like Luke." Alison said.

"Luke?" Jason ask.

"Luke I a friend of my mom's ." Alison clarifies.

"Oh." Jason said.

"Why are you two here?" Dakota ask.

"I was hungry, and I decided to come here." Jason said.

"Bad idea." Alison said, and sips coke.

"Waitress flirting with him?" Dakota ask.

"Yep." Alison said.

Dakota chuckles, "It could be worse."

"Like?" Alison ask.

"A sign that said 'Marry me Jason'." Dakota said.

Alison smiles.

"You make them sound desperate." Jason said.

"They are." Dakota said.

"They want some sugar." Alison said.

"Some sugar, besides eye candy." Dakota adds.

"I feel uncomfortable." Jason said.

"Many would wish to be in your place." Dakota said.

"That's just a dream, they should try to live it." Jason said.

* * *

"I know." Mr. Hernandez.

Reyna doesn't trust Mr. Hernandez.

"Thank you, Mr. Hernandez, for taking the time to answer our questions." Reyna said.

"My pleasure." Mr. Hernandez said.

"Goodbye." Reyna said. Reyna walks away, and the others follow. Reyna walks into the car, and starts the engine.

"What does everyone think about Mr, Hernandez?" Beckenfodorf ask.

"I have feeling he's hiding something." Bianca said.

"You're not the only one." Luke said.

"What do you suggest we do?" Reyna ask.

"Watch him." Luke said.

"Follow him?" Bianca ask.

"He has to come out somehow." Luke said.

"Sure." Bianca said.

* * *

**I am sorry I took long to update. I made this chapter a bit more longer to make up for it. I tried to make this chapter as interesting as possible. What do you think about Mr. Hernandez, or Mr. Sunshine. Good I know Dakota, and Jason are still buds?**

**Hint: Each dreams is about the past or future. Review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hope you like it!**

* * *

_"The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing... not healing, not curing... that is a friend who cares."_

_-Henri Nouwen_

* * *

"I'm not sure when he'll go out." Beckendorf said.

"He'll have to come out, eventually." Luke assures him.

"What are we going to do?" Bianca ask.

"Wait and see." Reyna said. She unlocks her car.

"Lets make small talk." Luke suggests. "How's Alison?" He ask. Beckendorf and Luke step inside of the car.

"She's fine." Reyna said.

"Is she still feisty?" Bianca asks as she steps into the car.

"Way more." Reyna said.

"Haven't seen her since a few weeks ago." Luke said.

"You can come by whenever you want." She reminds him.

"I'll make a mental note." Luke said.

"It was hard raising her." Bianca remembers.

"I know. Thank the god I had you guys to help at times." Reyna said.

"Beckendorf, remember when we first met Reyna?" Luke asks his friend.

"Yup. She already had a belly on her." Beckendorf said. Reyna remembers:

_Reyna walked into class, late. She woke up throwing up, swollen ankle and feet, and an awful headache. She ran into the bathroom and threw up everything she ate the night before. After Reyna threw up, she dressed, ate and headed out to her first class: English. Reyna was barely half way to class when the bell rang. She continued walking, frustrated._

_The classroom was big capable of holding 450 people. In the front of the classroom her teacher, Dr. Wrangler, was standing in front a board, teaching a lesson. The student's seat were like stair but had chairs every two rows._

_Dr. Wrangler saw Reyna. Dr. Wrangler was a 60 year old man with white hair and gray eyes. He had on beige pant and a baby blue tucked in Polo shirt._

_"Glad you came," Dr. Wrangler said kindly. She sat in the back of the class. She sat next to a boy with blonde hair and dark eyes, and he had on a pair of dark jeans and an orange Polo. The blonde boy sat next to an African-American that had on a pair of slacks and a white long-sleeved white shirt where Reyna could see his arm muscles. The African-American sat next to a girl with olive skin and black hair that had on a red shirt and gray pants. The blonde haired boy smiled at Reyna. Reyna felt uncomfortable._

_"Excuse my friend, he's and idiot." The African-American boy said. Reyna saw the African-American boy more closely and saw that he had a permanent scowled face, and warm brown eyes._

_"Oh." Reyna said. Reyna took out her notebook and a blue pen. Dr. Wrangler was talking about Greek mythology. Reyna already knew Greek mythology so she decided not to listen. She placed her hand in her stomach, worried. She didn't know how she would raise her child._

_"Is it a girl or boy?" The blonde haired boy asked._

_"What?" Reyna asked._

_"Luke, shut up." The girl said._

_"I'm just asking." Luke said. "Sorry, I just thought you were expecting since you had your hand on your stomach."_

_"Luke, don't make her uncomfortable." The African-American boy said._

_"Sorry." Luke apologized._

_"It's fine." Reyna said._

_"You don't want to talk about it?" Luke asked._

_"She just met you." The girl said._

_"Okay, I won't ask any further questions." Luke said._

"I wanted someone to talk to. I knew Greek mythology." Luke said.

"We wouldn't have met her if it wasn't for that." Beckendorf said.

"Met in law school." Luke remembers.

"Helped with diapers." Bianca said.

"Luke and Beckendorf ran away when it was time to change diapers." Reyna said.

Luke raises his hands, "That isn't for me."

"We noticed." Bianca said.

"Anyways, we pitched in when we can, Reyna worked to pay bills and attended law school." Beckendorf said.

"Luke, how'd you know I was pregnant?" Reyna asks Luke.

Luke shrugs. "You had this glow. And the way you had your hand on your stomach."

"Overtime, your belly grew and it confirmed you were pregnant." Beckendorf said.

* * *

"I'd be the most eligible bachelor." Dakota said.

"Sure." Jason encourages.

"Bobby would enjoy that." Dakota said.

Jason laughed. "I know he would."

"It would interesting to meet Bobby." Alison said.

"He's an idiot." Dakota said.

"But, he's a great friend." Jason said.

"True." Dakota agrees.

Alison looks out from the window. "It's late."

"Do you need to go home?" Jason ask.

"Nah, my mom works late today," Alison said as bites her pizza.

"Close your mouth." Jason said.

"No," Alison said, then opens her mouth wide open.

"Yuck." Jason said.

"Cool." Dakota said.

"Kota, is Jason dirty minded?" Alison ask.

"Kota?" Dakota said.

"Well I don't want to say 'Dakota, do you...', 'Dakota, how...' it's too much." Alison said.

"You have a point. I haven't been called that in a while." Dakota said.

"Kota, what are you talking about?" Jason jokes. Dakota smacks Jason on the arm.

"He is dirty. His butt is dirty." Dakota said. Alison bursts out laughing.

"Not true." Jason said seriously.

"Smelly boxers," Dakota whispers to Alison.

"Dang." Alison said.

"Shut up." Jason tells Dakota.

"Don't be ashamed." Dakota said.

Jason rolls his eyes. "Whatever."

* * *

Bianca smiles. "I remember when we called because we were worried about you and found out you were at the hospital giving birth."

"Luke had a heart attack." Beckendorf remembers.

"I was worried." Luke said.

"I gave birth to Alison by the time you guys came." Reyna said.

"But when we saw you, we saw you crying." Bianca said.

"When the nurse tried to give you Alison, you pushed her away." Beckendorf said.

"She had her father's eyes." Reyna said.

"We figured that out." Luke said.

"You guys stayed quiet the while time." Reyna said.

"But, we stayed with you in the time you needed someone the most." Luke said.

"You had to take away the pain you had inside your heart. We couldn't stop the pain you had inside. We just tolerated your pain while not knowing what your pain was about at the time." Beckendorf said.

"I remember when I held Alison." Luke smiles. Reyna remembers:

_Reyna held Alison in her arms. She was tired._

_'Can I hold the baby?' Luke asked. She nodded and gave the baby to Luke._

"I remember that too." Reyna said.

* * *

"That is a true story." Dakota said.

"Ever heard of _Tide._" Alison teases.

"You two barely met each other and you guy ganging up on me." Jason said.

Dakota laughs, "Sorry, bro."

"Why do I sense a bromance?" Alison teases.

"Your sensing wrong." Jason said.

"Are you denying our relationship, Jason Grace?" Dakota acts shock.

"It's low key." Jason said. Dakota laughs.

"I was about to break it." Dakota jokes. Jason rolls his eyes.

"We're best buds." Jason said.

"Buddies till the end." Dakota said.

"Always." Jason said.

* * *

"Crap." Bianca said.

"What?" Luke asks.

"Their leaving." Bianca said.

"Reyna-" Luke said.

"I know." Reyna interrupts. She sees Mr. Hernandez and Mr. Sunshine drive out of the driveway and onto the streets. The car they drive is a gray Dodge Charger.

"Now, this is fun." Beckendorf said. Reyna starts the car and follows the Dodge Charger.

"Where do you think they're going?" Bianca asks.

"Picking up yarn to knit sweaters for each other." Luke said.

"Luke?" Beckendorf ask.

"Yeah?" Luke said.

"Shut up." Beckendorf said. Bianca smiles.

"Wipe that smile." Luke said. Bianca frowns.

" 'Wipe that smile.' " Bianca imitates.

"Stop." Reyna orders. The Dodge entered a freeway; Reyna follows the Dodge. After forty-five minutes, the Dodge exits the freeway; Reyna follows. She continues following the car until she sees the destination the Dodge is going, a gentlemen's club.

"I think they are not 'partners'. " Bianca said.

"I agree." Reyna said.

* * *

"I should go." Alison said.

"Come on! I was just getting started!" Dakota said.

"I got some homework to bust." Alison said.

"Should I walk you?" Jason suggests.

"Nope. I'm a big girl. You two enjoy yourselves." Alison said.

Dakota holds out his hand, "It was a pleasure to meet you." Alison takes his hand and shakes it.

"Right back at you." Alison said smiling.

"Alright, we should hang out again." Jason suggests.

"Of course, Romeo." Alison said.

"When?" Jason asks.

"Tomorrow." Alison said.

"For sure." Jason said.

"Can Kota come?" Alison ask.

"I have a busy schedule." Dakota said.

"Amuse me, what do you do?" Jason asks.

"Sleeping." Dakota said.

"That's a tight schedule." Alison said sarcastically.

"See, Alison agrees with me." Dakota said.

"Fine." Jason said.

"Bye, Jace." Alison said.

"Bye." Jason said.

"Bye, Kota." Alison said.

"Bye." Dakota waves. The waitress comes.

"Is everything alright?" The waitress asks. Dakota winks at Alison. She laughs. Alison walks out of the pizza shop before hearing, "Everything is fine now that your here." She hears Jason laughing.

She slowly starts walking back home. She smiles. She likes hanging out with Jason and Dakota. Yes, she knew they were probably in their early thirties, like her mom, but they had a close bond to one another. Alison knew that Jason seems like an emotional wreck at times, but Dakota seems to deal with it and pretty well.

* * *

"Oh." The waitress said shock. Jason couldn't stop laughing.

"Excuse my friend." Jason apologizes.

"Don't excuse me." Dakota said.

"Can I get more Coke?" Jason asks the waitress.

"Sure." The waitress said shyly. She takes the coke and starts walking away.

"Stay thirsty my friend." Dakota said in a raspy voice. Jason laughs.

"There's something wrong with you, man." Jason said.

"Still buds." Dakota reminds.

"True." Jason agrees.

"We've been through thick and thin." Dakota said.

"I know with the whole beating Gaea thing." Jason said.

"You, ignoring us when you returned to Rome." Dakota said.

Jason scowls, "I said, I'm sorry."

"I know." Dakota said.

"Sneaking inside the Baths." Jason said. Dakota laughs.

"You wanted to see _her _badly." Dakota reminds.

"It hurts talking about _her._" Jason said.

"It hurt you when _she_ left." Dakota said.

"I was heartbroken." Jason said sadly. Dakota never told Jason about his last discussion with Reyna, neither has Bobby. They know Jason was hurting so they decided they would tell him when he gets better. Jason was still the same when Reyna left but he seems to tolerate it more.

"I could tell." Dakota sips his kool-aid.

"I was stupid from what I did." Jason said.

"Yup." Dakota agrees.

Jason furrows his eyebrows. "Your suppose to be comforting me."

"I am. I was the person who you cried on when _she _left. I didn't question you. I comforted you not even knowing what you did. There isn't a medicine for heartbreak but I stayed, even though you had pain that no one around you could heal." Dakota said.

"That's deep." Jason comments.

"I know. Kool-aid can make you say deep things." Dakota drinks his kool-aid.

* * *

"Lets get out of the car." Reyna instructs. Beckendorf hesitates.

"I'm not sure Silena would like it." Beckendorf said.

"Beckendorf, this is probably the time I say, 'how cute', but get out of the car." Bianca said. Beckendorf did as he was told.

Luke gets out of the car. "One problem: Girls can't go inside."

"Why not?" Bianca said.

"Gentlemen's club." Luke said.

"Good news." Reyna said.

"What?" Bianca said.

"They entered into the bar next door to the club." Beckendorf said. The bar is one story high, the outside is made of dark chocolate wood, old western doors that slide open and a sign that said, The Drunkie. Classic, Reyna thought.

"Lets go." Reyna said. The four enter the bar. The bar looks big with a lot of round tables, a piano at the corner of the room, a bar space at front and a lot of 'entertainers' as the girls from the gentlemen club would call themselves. They take a seat at a corner of the room.

"Do you see them?" Beckendorf asks.

"Nah." Bianca replies.

"I thought they would go to the gentlemen club." Luke said.

"The girls have plenty of customers," Reyna said as she watches many of the 'entertainers' flirting with the men.

"Definitely, not 'partners'." Beckendorf said.

"They have to be somewhere." Bianca said.

"Luke, do you have your camera?" Reyna asks.

"Yep," Luke takes out his camera from his back pocket. When Luke took out the camera from his back pocket it remembered Reyna of Bobby and his dirty tricks. She smiled.

"Do you think we should ask around?" Beckendorf asks.

"Go for it." Luke said. Beckendorf and Luke stand up from the table and walk around asking for Mr. Hernandez and Mr. Sunshine.

"Me and you." Bianca said.

Reyna sees two men approaching her. Gosh, Reyna thought sarcastically. The men re both ugly with crooked noses, copper colored skin, wrinkled skin, and medium height. "Here comes trouble."

"Hello." One of the men greets. The only difference Reyna could tell from the two men was that one had obsidian and the other one had light brown eye color.

"Hello." The light brown eyed man greets.

"Hello." Bianca said.

"What are two pretty faces doing here?" The obsidian color eye man said.

"Personal business." Reyna said.

"Mind to share." The light brown eyes man said.

"No, but do you know where Mr. Hernandez and Mr. Sunshine are currently at?" Bianca asks them.

"Mr. Hernandez is probably with Sally." The obsidian eye color man said.

"Sally?" Reyna asked confuse.

"Sally is Mr. Hernandez's favorite 'entertainer'." The light color eye man said.

"What about Mr. Sunshine?" Bianca asked.

"That, I really don't know." The obsidian color eye man said.

"Are you two girls alone?" The light color eyes man said.

"We will gladly give you a ride." The obsidian color eye man added.

Reyna narrows her eyes on the two men. "No." She said coldly.

* * *

Luke and Beckendorf walk around the bar. Luke already had a bad feeling about the 'partners' and it was confirm. Luke looks beside him to see Beckendorf scanning the room. Luke knows about Beckendorf's past, and Beckendorf knows about him Luke's past. A 'entertainer' approached them.

"What can I do for you?" She asks. She has sea-green eyes, black hair with bangs, pale skin, and too much make-up. She has on a skin tight black dress that was too short and reveals plenty of skin. Her sea-green eyes reminds Luke of Percy Jackson.

"Umm, no service of that kind." Luke said uncomfortable.

"Yeah, umm, do you know Mr. Sunshine or Mr. Hernandez?" Beckendorf asks.

Her eyes brighten. "Yes, I do. They are out number one customers." She said.

"They come with you?" Luke asks.

"At times, but, Mr. Sausage and Mr. Horner aren't my duty this night, sadly." She pouts. Yuck, Luke thought.

"What?" He said confuse.

"Those are names that they are known as." She said.

"Why?" Beckendorf ask.

"Because." She said mysteriously. Luke feel shivers run down his spine but not in a good way.

"Oh." Luke said.

"Babe." A man said. She turns.

"Yes?" She said.

"Get your hot butt over here." The man said. Luke looks at the man's direction and sees it's Mr. Hernandez. He has his ginger hair tie into a bun, unbuckle black pants, and the same white shirt as earlier but wrinkle.

She giggles. "Round two?"

"Yep." Mr. Hernandez said happily. Luke is thankful that Mr. Hernandez didn't recognize him.

"Sorry," she said in fake apologetical voice. "Duty calls." She winks at Beckendorf and walks away. Luke watches as she walked with Mr. Hernandez as he cupped her butt and patted it. No respect, Luke thought. Luke took pictures of Mr. Hernandez and the 'entertainer' as they walk away.

"What just happened?" Beckendorf ask.

"I don't know either." Luke said confuse.

"Where are the girls?" Beckendorf asks.

"Probably at the table." Luke said. Luke turns to see the girls talking to two ugly guys. Beckendorf saw too.

"Lets go." Luke said.

* * *

Reyna is already annoy with the two guys. They kept asking why they came and why they came by themselves even though, Reyna told then they weren't alone. She saw Luke and Beckendorf walk towards them. Bianca releases a sigh of relief.

"Hey." Luke said.

"Hello." Reyna said.

"Can I help you?" Luke asks the two guys.

"We were just asking if they came alone." The obsidian eye man said.

"They came with us." Beckendorf said.

"We thought they were 'entertainers'." The light color eye man said. Reyna grits her teeth. He is disrespectful and has no manners.

"Why would two pretty face like them be 'entertainers'?" Luke asks them.

"The idiot doesn't know the difference." Reyna said.

"Their in suits not skin tight dresses." Beckendorf said.

"Disgusting." Bianca said.

"Leave." Reyna orders.

The obsidian color eye man smirks. "We don't take orders, girly." Reyna rises from her chair. She wishes she had a dagger or any other weapon to pound him with.

"Calm down." The light color eye man said.

"Don't tell her to 'calm down'. " Luke said.

"We don't want any trouble." Beckendorf said.

"But, if you don't leave we will." Luke warns.

"Do what's good for you," Bianca suggests as she rises from her chair. The obsidian color eye man gulps and walks away, the other one follows.

"Douche bag." Reyna said.

"Lets go." Bianca said darkly.

They walk to the car and find a handwritten note on the windshield. The note said:

_Don't come back or face your consequences. _

Reyna rereads the note and gives the note to Bianca. Bianca read the note and hands it to Beckendorf. Beckendorf reads the note and gives the note to Luke.

"It has to be Mr. Hernandez or Mr. Sunshine." Luke said as he folds the paper.

Reyna holds her hand out. "Question is why and how?" Luke gives her the note.

"They don't want us to look into it." Beckendorf said.

"It won stop us." Bianca said. Reyna unlocks her car door and steps inside. The others enter the car.

"Before we go, I wanted to say...thank you, for getting the two guys out of our faces." Reyna said.

Beckendorf and Luke nod. "We didn't know the situation so we decided to investigate." Luke said.

* * *

Alison is at home doing her homework.

"I hate Biology homework." She complains. She wishes she could do anything but her homework.

"I should've listened but Nick was there- Mackenzie's boyfriend." Alison said. She looks at her problem:

_4. What is the name of cell reproduction? _

"I remember that...sort of." She said as she bits her pencil. She feel confuse.

"Dang it, I shouldn't have been listening to Nick." Alison said. She thinks of Nick. He's kind and funny. She could see what Mackenzie sees in him, but she thought the only reason Mackenzie is going out with him is because she thinks he's hot.

"Nemo?" Alison asks herself.

"Mitochondria?" Alison said.

She snaps her finger. "Mitosis." She writes the answer.

Alison reads the next question:

_5. What happens after mitosis?_

"The cell grows back to its original state." Alison writes.

"I could be catching up on my shows right now." Alison complains.

She continues with the next question:

_6. What is the name of half of a chromosome?_

_"_Chromatid." She writes.

"Ugh, I only have four questions left." Alison declares. "Should I answer them? Should I copy Jean? Should I just quickly do them in English class?" She asks herself. "English class." She confirms. She folds her homework and places it inside of her bag.

She purses her lips. "What shall I do?" She asked herself.

"Should I break a window? Should I egg Andrew's house?" She asks.

"I am so bored." She said.

"If my mom heard me she would think I'm insane." Alison said with a smile.

* * *

"Mr. Hernandez was with an 'entertainer' name Sally." Reyna said.

"He was with a 'entertainer'." Beckendorf said.

"The 'entertainer' could be Sally." Luke said.

"How do you know for sure?" Bianca ask.

"He wanted round two." Luke said.

"It's likely her name is Sally." Reyna said. She is driving back home, but she has to drop off her friends first.

"What about Mr. Sunshine?" Beckendorf asks.

"He was in the bar." Luke said.

"We just don't know where he was exactly." Reyna said.

"He was probably with an 'entertainer'." Beckendorf said.

"Good point." Reyna agrees.

"You do have the picture?" Bianca asks Luke.

"Yes." Luke hold up a camera.

Reyna drives to work and drops off her friends.

"Compare more notes tomorrow." Bianca said. Everyone nods in agreement.

"G'night." Reyna said.

"G'night." The others said. The others step out of the car and closes the door behind them. She drives home.

When she arrives home she finds Alison on the couch watching TV.

"You didn't break anything?" Reyna asks.

"Nope. I don't have the energy." Alison said.

"Me either." Reyna said.

"Your a goody two shoes." Alison said.

"I can be a rebel." Reyna said.

"Sure you can." Alison said.

"Whatever." Reyna said.

Alison turns off the TV. "I'm going to sleep." She announces.

"I am too." Reyna said. Reyna walks upstairs and into her room. She takes off her suit and puts on her pjs, and she falls into her bed. She instantly falls asleep.

* * *

Alison crawls into her room. She takes off her shoes and massages them.

"I have to go to sleep." Alison said. She changes into her pjs and instantly falls asleep.

* * *

Reyna dreams:

_She is holding Jason's hand._

_"I miss you." He tells her._

_"I know." Reyna said. She notices her surroundings and she's at the beach watching the sun set._

_"I'm sorry." He apologizes._

_"Sorry doesn't heal my pain." Reyna said._

_Jason smiles. "Do kisses counts?"_

_She shrugs. "I don't know." Jason laughs. _

Reyna wakes up hearing the alarm. Reyna feels lazy to get up and to what she has to do, but she has to do it. She gets out of bed, takes a shower, brushes her teeth dresses, combs her hair.

She walks downstairs and goes to the kitchen. In the kitchen, Reyna prepares oatmeal and toast. She waits for Alison.

* * *

Alison wakes up and does her normal routine: shower, brush teeth, combs hair and dresses. She has on gray jeans, a v-neck black shirt, a white cardigan, and black Converse.

Alison walks downstairs to see her mom at the table.

"Morning." Alison said.

"Morning." Reyna said.

Alison sits at the table and eats her oatmeal. "What did you find?"

"Interesting things." Reyna said.

"Like?" Alison asks.

"When I get home." Reyna said.

"Tell me." Alison whines.

"Nope." Reyna said.

"Fine." Alison said. She puts her feet on the table. "Don't tell me, 'Put your feet down.' I have my reason."

Reyna smiles. "Hurry up and eat your oatmeal."

After Reyna and Alison finish eating, they gather their things and go ini the car. Reyna starts the car and drives.

"Will we drive Andrew again?" Alison asks.

"I don't know." Reyna said. Alison sees Andrew outside of his house. Reyna rolls down the window.

"Look what the devil dragged in." Alison said.

"Alison." Reyna warns.

"Sorry." Alison mutters.

"Good morning." Andrew said. He has on a blue suit, a red tie, and brown shoes. In his hand he has a suitcase.

"Extra seducing today?" Alison ask.

Andrew smiles. "Yes."

"The tie brings out your eyes." Alison compliments.

"Thank you." Andrew said.

"It makes your eyes look like poop." Alison said. She hears her mom resisting the urge to laugh.

"Alison." Reyna warns with a smile.

Andrew shakes his head. "Can I have a ride?"

"Get in." Reyna said. Andrew gets in the car. Reyna drives off.

"No question?" Andrew asks Alison.

"Who are you seducing today?" Alison asks.

"I don't know. I felt extra seductive today." He jokes.

"I can see the girls swooning from outside." Alison said sarcastically. Andrew laughs. Reyna drives at the front of the school.

"I'll pick you up." Reyna said.

"Okay." Alison gets out of the car; Andrew does the same but goes to the seat Alison was.

"Bye, Poop Eye." Alison tells Andrew. Andrew shakes his head. "Bye, Mom."

"Bye." Reyna said. Alison walks away.

Alison walks into school to see Jean waiting for her. Jean has on light blue jeans, a yellow shirt, and a dark purple cardigan.

"Hi." Jean greets.

"S'up." Alison said. The girls walk to first period, Algebra 2. The first thing Alison sees is Mackenzie. Mackenzie has on a long shoulder, very revealing, mid-thigh red dress with nude color high heels.

"Goth Queen, extra trashy." Mackenzie said.

"Someone didn't get laid yesterday." Alison said. Mackenzie frowns.

She walks towards Alison with something behind her back. "What?"

Alison sighs. "What do you have behind your back?" She asks.

"No one likes you." Mackenzie said.

"Leave her alone." Jean said.

"Shut up." Mackenzie tells Jean.

"Don't talk to her like that." Alison said.

"Nick doesn't like you." Mackenzie said. Mackenzie has a cup of hot coffee behind her back and she pours it on Alison's head. Alison is shock but did expect something like that.

"Witch." Alison said angrily.

"What the hell was that for!" Jean yells.

"Refreshing. Stupid. Trash. Worthless. Idiot. Go drown yourself." Mackenzie said. Alison feels her eye sting. She walks out of the room. She hears Jean yell, "Your the stupid piece of trash that is an idiot. Go to hell Mackenzie." She hears Jean run after her.

"Alison." She calls out. Alison continues walking. "Alison."

Alison walks into the bathroom; Jean follows her. The bathroom is big with light brown walls, white color bathroom stalls and oval shape mirror. Alison looks at the mirror- she sees the coffee on her. She feels sticky. She still feels the steaming coffee in her skin. Alison sits on the floor. She breaks down. Tears flow down her face.

"Don't cry." Jean said.

"Did you see what that hag did to me?" She asks Jean.

"I know. She's stupid." Jean said.

"Witch." Alison said.

"I know." Jean grabs her hand.

"Coffee? Hot coffee." Alison said.

"Let it go." Jean said. Alison did what she was told; she cries.

"She did it in front of the class." Alison said.

"On purpose." Jean agrees.

The bell rings.

"We should go to class." Alison said. She tries to stand up but Jean pulls her down.

"Nope. Calm down. Screw the bell. Your important right now." Jean tells her.

Alison sniffles. "Thanks for sticking up for me."

"Your welcome. Your would've done the same thing for me anyways." Jeans said. Jean squeezes Alison's hand. Alison continues crying while Jean stays quiet. Alison stops crying when she hears a knock on the door. Jean looks at Alison. Alison nods as she wipes her eyes. "Come in." Jean said. The door slowly opens.

* * *

**Yes, I know, a very long chapter. I was just very inspire that I kept on writing and writing. I hope you like. Who do you think is at the door? What do you think about the revelation of Mr. Hernandez and Mr. Sunshine? How'd you like the Jason and Dakota moment? Leave a review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hope you like it!**

* * *

_"Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it."_

_-Confucius_

* * *

The door slowly opens. It's Alexis. Alexis has on a red long-sleeved shirt that brings out her hair color, dark blue jeans and dark brown knee-high boots.

"Do you want to insult her?" Jean ask.

"No." Alexis said. She steps inside the bathroom.

"What do you want?" Alison snaps. She's ready to strike if Alexis messes with her.

Alexis flinch. "I saw you run out of class."

"And? Did you come to insult me? Did Mackenzie sent you?" Alison answers.

"I came to check on you!" Alexis shouts.

"Is that all?" Jean ask.

"Your shirt is stained." Alexis notice.

"Gee, I didn't know that." Alison said sarcastically.

Alexis sighs in frustration, "I don't want to hear your sarcasm. I came to help you."

"How?" Alison said.

Alexis takes off her backpack, opens it and takes out a lavender color shirt; she holds out the shirt to Alison. "Here." She said.

"I don't need your help." Alison said stubbornly.

"I didn't ask. Take the shirt and put it on." Alexis order.

"No." Alison said.

"Your lucky I didn't pick the color pink. I know you hate pink." Alexis said.

Alison's lips slightly turn upwards. "Fine." Alison takes the shirt.

"Thank you." Alexis said with relief.

Alison holds up the shirt. The shirt has no sleeves, a circular cut neckline, gold buttons that goes down the bottom, and a see through lace back. "Okay." Alison said.

"It's nice." Jean said.

"I know, it's not your style but that's the best I can find." Alexis said.

"Either that or the pink shirt?" Alison ask. Alexis nods.

"Go dress. I'm surprise you feel sticky yet." Jean said.

"Thank god that I shaved my underarms today." Alison said. Jean laughs. Alexis smiles. Alison enters the bathroom stall, and dresses into the shirt.

* * *

"When will your car be fixed?" Reyna ask while driving.

"Aren't you okay being my driver?" Andrew playfully ask.

"I'm willing to stop this car and kick out out." Reyna threatens.

"Sorry," Andrew apologizes.

"Answer my question." Reyna orders.

"It'll be done by next week." Andrew answers.

"Why so long?" Reyna ask.

Andrew shrugs, "It's a Porsche."

"And?" Reyna said with annoyance in her voice.

"When it's sent to the mechanic they check everything." Andrew said.

"It's just a car." Reyna said.

Andrew shakes his head, "It's a Porsche."

"Big whoop." Reyna said. "It's a piece of junk that broke down."

Andrew opens his eyes wide open; Reyna can see his mossy eyes clearly. "Well, it's an expensive piece of junk."

"We're actually agreeing on something." Reyna said.

"That was sarcasm." Andrew said.

"Really?" Reyna said.

Andrew shakes his head while smiling, "You are one of a kind." Reyna tenses up. His words bring back memories:

_Jason was sitting on the couch, watching TV. In the kitchen, Reyna was preparing dinner. She was grumpy._

_"You can help." Reyna said. She was making grilled salmon with Cesear salad. She knew_ _Percy would feel offended if he saw Jason and Reyna eating his 'people'._

_Jason grunted, "Do I have to?" He whined._

_"It's an option." Reyna said. What she really meant was, 'Yes, get out butt over here and help me with the stupid fish.'_

_"I'm coming," Jason said as he turned off the TV. He got up and entered the kitchen._

_Reyna finished seasoning the salmon and turned on the stove. "Great." She said._

_"What are your orders, Chef Reyna?" Jason asked._

_"Cook the salmon." Reyna said. She gave Jason a plate of uncooked salmon._

_Jason scrunched his nose, "I'm not sure Percy would be happy."_

_"I am aware of that." Reyna said. She grabbed lettuce from the fridge._

_"I'm not an awesome chef." Jason said._

_"Try." Reyna said._

_Jason nodded. He washed his hands and dried them with a towel. Then, he grabbed a piece of salmon and placed it on the hot pan—the salmon sizzled from the hot pan._

_Reyna finished slicing the lettuce and took out a bottle of Cesar dressing from the fridge._

_"It's cute." Jason said._

_"What?" Reyna asked._

_"When you scowl, it's cute." Jason said._

_Reyna raised an eyebrow. Jason laughed. "It's cute?" She asked._

_Jason nodded. He approached Reyna and placed his hand on her hip. "Yup." Jason emphasized the 'p'._

_"How about when I'm furious?" Reyna crossed her arms._

_Jason grabbed Reyna's face. "It's still cute."_

_"You're getting fish all over me." Reyna said annoyed._

_"Hope you don't mind." Jason said. He kissed her forehead._

_"I don't mind." Reyna said._

_"You are one of a kind." Jason said._

_"Jason?" Reyna said._

_"Mmm." Jason said._

_"The salmon is burning." Reyna said._

_"Crud." Jason said._

"Did I say something wrong?" Andrew asks with concern.

Reyna shakes her head, "No."

"You seem to zone out." Andrew said with his voice still full of concern.

"It's nothing," Reyna said as she drives to the parking lot.

"This is it." Andrew said.

Reyna parks at a parking space. "Yeah." She said.

"You're going down." Andrew said.

"Keep dreaming." Reyna said.

* * *

Alison feels uncomfortable with the shirt Alexis gave her. She's still weary about Alexis. She has a nagging gut feeling that this might be a nasty plan Alexis and Mackenzie have brewing.

"Come out." Jean said.

"Alright, alright, keep your panties on." Alison said. She opens the bathroom stall and steps out.

"Wow." Jean said in shock.

Alexis stares at Alison. She feels uncomfortable with Alexis's eye on her. Alexis slowly walks in circles around Alison. "Wow, you have a nice figure." Alexis compliments.

Yup, I have uncomfortable, Alison thought. "I feel uncomfortable." Alison confesses.

"Nonsense, your just not used to wearing colored clothing." Alexis said.

"I'm 'Goth Queen'." Alison said.

Alexis bites her bottom lip. "I don't want to talk about that."

"I do." Alison said angrily.

"Calm down." Jean said.

"You insult me and when Mackenzie's back turns you come. What's wrong with you? We haven't talked since eight grade." Alison said as her eyes are stinging again.

"It doesn't matter. I did what I wanted to do." Alexis said.

"What does this mean? Are we still enemies? Are we 'friends'? I don't consider you my friend anymore." Alison ask.

"It's doesn't matter." Alexis repeats.

"Yes, it does." Alison said.

"Shut up, don't talk about that." Alexis said.

"Answer me." Alison orders.

"Keep the shirt." Alexis said. She opens the door to leave.

"That's it?" Alison asks.

"No. Please, don't tell anyone. I'll deny it." Alexis said and walks out.

"Do you think she's up to something twisted?" Alison asks Jean.

Jean shrugs, "Wait and see."

Alison nods, "Okay."

"Ready to go back to class?" Jean ask.

"Yup." Alison said as she grabs her coffee covered clothes and puts them inside of her bag.

"Relax." Jean instructs.

"Jean, I got covered spilled coffee, I'm not giving birth." Alison said.

Jean laugh. "Okay." She said.

"Crud." Alison said.

"What?" Jean ask.

"I still have coffee in my hair." Alison realizes.

Jean smiles, "It's the new it fragrance."

Alison laughs. "When guys say that a certain girl smells like flowers, they'll smell coffee when they smell me."

Jean laugh. "Yummy."

The girls come out laughing from the bathroom.

"Alison." A male said from behind.

Alison turns around to see Nick. Nick has on light blue jeans, a red and blue plaid shirt and a black beanie. "Nick?" Alison said with confusion.

"Hey." Nick said coolly.

"Hi." Alison said.

"Hi, Jean." Nick said.

"Hi." Jean said shyly.

Nick looks at Alison. "You look pretty." Nick said.

"Barely noticed?" Jean asks Nick.

"I've noticed but-umm- never mind." Nick said nervously.

"Why are you here?" Alison ask.

"I saw what Mackenzie did, so I decided to come and see if you're alright." Nick said.

"Oh." Alison said.

"I brought you this." Nick said. He holds out his black leather jacket.

"Oh." Alison said. She desperately wants to face palm herself.

"I thought you might've wanted something to cover up." Nick said.

"That's nice." Alison said.

"Put it on or I'll take it." Jean blurts out.

Alison smiles. "Thanks." She takes the leather jacket and pits it on. The jacket is big on Alison, but she smells Nick's cologne on the jacket— it smells good.

"It looks good." Nick said.

"We should head to class." Jean suggests.

"Sure." Alison agrees.

Alison, Nick and Jean are walking to class. Jean decides to hum_ Single Ladies _by Beyoncé; Alison nudges Jean.

They walk into class. Alison sees Alexis sitting next to Mackenzie. Mackenzie has her mouth in a 'O' shape. She hears whispers of "Wow" and "She looks nice."

"Go back to learning." Alison snaps. Nick chuckles and sits with Mackenzie. Alison and Jean go sit in the back.

"That's a nice way to spend half of a first period." Jean said.

"Agreed." Alison said.

"I want to smell that jacket later." Jean said.

Alison laughs.

* * *

Reyna is in the courtroom. She's listening to Andrew's case.

"Mary Lee Stuart did not kill her husband. The evidence doesn't add up to her. No witnesses. No evidence that points to her.

Mary Lee Stuart truly loved her husband. She said that she loved him in her vow.

Take a moment to see this video." Andrew said. A security guard comes pushing a black plasma TV on wheels. Andrew turns on the TV, and Mary gets up from her seat and gives Andrew a cd. Andrew takes the cd and puts it inside the DVD player and presses play. Reyna watches the film:

_The sky was orange mixed with yellow with many white clouds floating in the sky. The waves of the ocean was slamming against the rock while seagulls flew happily across the sky._

_The end of the aisle stood a wedding arch. The wedding arch was painted white, and the middle of the arch was two red roses with a pink ribbon. The arch was wrapped with vines, leaves and light colorful flowers._

_Mary walked slowly towards the aisle. She was dressed in a white sweetheart neckline mermaid wedding dress. The dress was made of silk with diamonds on the edges of the neckline. She had on a long veil that reached the floor. Her brown hair was in a tight bun. Around her neck, was a thin gold necklace. Her makeup looked natural. Mary walked down a path full of sand with a pink bouquet in her hand._

_A man waited for her at the end of the aisle— Billy George Stuart. Billy had on a black tux with a yellow tie. He had short blond hair, light blue eyes, round gray rimmed glasses, tan skin, a squared jaw and a straight nose that turned slightly upwards— he was handsome but at the same time looked nerdy._

_Billy held out his hand to Mary, and she took it. "Your beautiful." He mouthed. She smiled. Billy and Mary stood in front of the wedding arch. In front of them was a man with a green leave skirt and no shirt. He gave Billy and Mary each a necklace made out of flowers._

_"We are gathered here today to join a couple— Mary Lee Scotland and Billy George Stuart. We have gathered to celebrate the love or one they have for another. Bring the rings." The man said. A small dark skinned boy walked down the aisle with a red pillow and two rings in his hand. "Take your ring." The man said. Billy and Mary got the other person's ring._

_"Billy, I will read to you the vows you have chosen." The man said._

_"Very well." Billy said._

_" 'I, Billy George Stuart, herby take you Mary Lee Scotland as my wife.' " The man said._

_"I, Billy George Stuart, herby take you Mary Lee Scotland as my wife." Billy repeated._

_" 'I will always love you like the first time I have ever laid my eyes upon you.' " The man said._

_"I will always love you like the first time I have ever laid my eyes upon you." Billy repeated._

_" 'I met you in the city of gambles— Las Vegas. You were a beauty that attracted me from the distance. I approached you, and we talked for hours. Our conversation were simple and that's what I liked about it. I'm fortunate that I saw the beauty that others can not see.' "The man said._

_" 'I met you in the city of gambles— Las Vegas. You were a beauty that attracted me from the distance. I approached you, and we talked for hours. Our conversation were simple and that's what I liked about it. I'm fortunate that I saw the beauty that others can not see.' " Billy repeated._

_" 'I promise to love you unconditionally no matter what. I love you more than life itself, and my life wouldn't be complete without you by my side.' " the man said._

_"I promise to love you unconditionally no matter what. I love you more than life itself, and my life wouldn't be complete without you by my side." Bill repeated. He placed the ring on Mary's finger._

_"Mary, are you ready to say your vows?" The man asked._

_"Yes." Mary said._

_" 'I, Mary Lee Scotland, hereby take you, Billy George Stuart, as my lawful husband.' " The man said._

_"I, Mary Lee Scotland, hereby take you, Billy George Stuart, as my lawful husband." Mary repeated._

_" 'I've grown to love you but everyday my love for you grows stronger. I love you more than anything this world has to offer. I can't wait to grow old next to you.' " The man said._

_ "I've grown to love you but everyday my love for you grows stronger. I love you more than anything this world has to offer. I can't wait to grow old next to you." Mary repeated._

_" 'We've met in Las Vegas. Your approached me with a soulful smiles, and I could've sworn I was a goner. I promise to love you until death due us apart.' "_

_"We've met in Las Vegas. Your approached me with a soulful smiles, and I could've sworn I was a goner. I promise to love you until death due us apart." Mary repeated._

_"Speak now if you do not agree with this marriage." The man said his hands raised. The crowd was silent. "I pronounce you husband and wife. Billy, you may kiss your bride." Billy leaned in and kissed Mary. The crowd went wild._

"Beautiful, don't you think?" Andrew said.

"I can't believe he's doing this." Luke whispers to Reyna.

"She didn't promise to stay faithful to him." Bianca points out.

"I bet when she first saw him she saw his Rolex watch on his wrist." Luke said. Reyna chuckles.

"Luke, be nice." Beckendorf whispers.

"Why would she hurt her husband? She has a perfect life. She lived in a beautiful house and had a husband that loved her unconditionally. Why would she kill him?" Andrew said.

"Thank you, Mr. Griffin." The judge said. "Who will present on the state's side?" He ask.

"I will." Bianca said. Reyna looks at Bianca. Bianca nods.

"Present you're case." The judge said.

"Your honor, that's just a video. That's a video of the past. We really don't know what was happening before Billy had died. We know that Billy died. But, Billy died in the hands of Mrs. Stuart." Bianca said.

"She didn't say in her vows that she would be faithful." Luke speaks out.

"Yup, she had an affair. When she was asked if she had an affair she remained quiet. Mary just wanted money. As Mr. Griffin said, 'She has a perfect life.' Would Mary do anything to still keep that perfect life? Would she kill? I think she can and did." Bianca said.

"Thank you, Bianca." The judge said. "A ten minute break will be taken."

"That was nice." Beckendorf said.

"Thanks." Bianca said.

"Do you think the gardener did the dirty work?" Reyna ask.

"It's likely or together." Luke said.

"We have to find out who wrote the note from last night." Reyna said.

"Could it be Mr. Sunshine?" Beckendorf ask.

"Yeah, we didn't see him last night." Bianca points out.

"True, we just know he was there." Luke said.

"Nice job." Andrew said.

Reyna turns around. "She knows her job."

"I'm fully aware of that." Andrew said smiling.

* * *

The bell rings. Alison gathers her things and waits for Jean.

"Again." Alison said.

"Shush." Jean said smiling. She gathers her books and her bag.

"Out the door." Alison said. Jean and Alison walk out of the classroom. Alison sees Mackenzie leaning against a locker.

"Purple is not your color." Mackenzie said.

"Have you ever heard of a bra?" Alison asks sweetly.

Mackenzie narrows her eyes, "Were you crying like a baby in the bathroom?"

"It's actually lavender." Alison said.

"Don't change the subject." Mackenzie snarls.

"Quit it." Jean said.

"What are you going to do about it?" Mackenzie ask.

"Mackenzie, stop it." Nick said.

Alison sees Nick with a textbook in his hand and his backpack on his shoulder.

Mackenzie pouts and rolls her eyes, "Fine." She said with defeat.

"See you later." Nick said.

"Okay." Mackenzie walks to Nick and hugs him. Nick looks taken back by Mackenzie's display of this type of affection.

"Bye?" He said confuse. Mackenzie kisses his cheek and walks away.

"Goodbye, Evil Demon." Alison said. Mackenzie turns and runs her index across her neck. Nick rolls his eyes.

"Do you have her on a leash?" Jean ask.

Nick laughs. "I don't know." He confesses.

"Thanks for having her on a leash." Alison said.

"No problem. Can you do me a favor?" Nick asks Alison.

"Sure." Alison said.

"Try to ignore Mackenzie." Nick said.

"I try, but she goes after me." Alison said.

"I know, but can you avoid her at all cost?" He ask.

"Fine. Do you know why she strikes at me?" Alison ask.

Nick hesitates, "I'll tell you later."

Alison nods. "Have you told her?"

"Yes." Nick said.

"She doesn't listen." Jean said.

Nick nods. "I know Mackenzie can do bad things; I just don't want Alison to get hurt."

Alison narrows her eyes at Nick, "I can take care of myself."

"I know you can. I don't want you hurt or still continue fighting against Mackenzie." Nick said.

"Are you protecting Alison or Mackenzie?" Jean ask. Alison could've sworn she saw Nick's cheek turn rosy pink.

"Maybe we should go to class." Alison suggests.

Nick, Jean, and Alison walk into Biology class. Jean and Alison sit in the back, and Nick follows.

"You want to get in trouble again?" Jean asks Nick.

Nick sighs. "Why not?" He flicks his hair.

"What's wrong with you?" Alison ask.

"What?" Nick ask with confusion.

"This." Alison flicks her hair.

Jean laughs. "Don't get overwhelmed Alison."

"Shut up." Alison said laughing.

"Don't get overwhelmed." Nick said.

Alison playfully punches Nick's arm. "I will not get overwhelmed by your hair flicking."

"Good." Nick said.

The bell rings. Mrs. Sweeny gets up from her chair and walks to the center of the room. "Take out your notebook. Notes. We will take plenty of notes today."

"Great." Alison mutters. She takes out her notebook and a pen.

* * *

"Lets begin." The judge said.

"Your honor, Mary didn't kill Billy. She was at the golf course playing golf, how can she kill someone when she was somewhere else? That. Is. Not. Possible. In the movies, it usually is the evil twin sister that is jealous of the good sister. But, this is reality." Andrew said.

"I agree, this is reality. That's why Mary shouldn't be let on the loose without paying for the crimes that she caused. Think about Billy's family. I'm sure they cried floods of tears when they heard their family member was murdered. In the autopsy, it said that Billy died a half hour before Mary called the police." Reyna said.

"It may have been on purpose." Andrew said.

"Are you assuming that she was blamed?" Reyna ask.

"I'm saying it is possible." Andrew said.

"Are you aware that she and Billy weren't having a stable relationship at the time?" Reyna ask.

"They weren't?" Andrew ask.

"Yes, they were having problem." Reyna said.

"Where's the evidence?" Andrew ask.

"You mean the witness." Reyna said.

Andrew approaches Reyna. Reyna stands still and stares at Andrew. She wants him to know that she is not afraid of him. "Where's the witness?" He ask.

"She's not here." Reyna said.

"Why not?" Andrew backs away.

"Her flight got delayed." Reyna said.

"Are you still searching for that witness who can say that Billy and Mary were in the rocks?" Andrew ask.

"I have a number of witnesses, but she was the first to volunteer. She wants Mary to pay for what she did." Reyna said.

"I will do whatever in my power for my client can not pay for something she did not did." Andrew said.

"Go by the evidence." Reyna said.

"No, you're going by someone else's words." Andrew said.

"I have others backing up that same story." Reyna said.

"Well, we'll see when your witness comes." Andrew said.

"The witness that is going by the oath will not lie." Reyna said.

"We'll see." Andrew said.

"We will." Reyna said.

* * *

Alison's hand ache. She's been writing nonstop almost the while entire period. The bell rings. She wants to shout from the top of her lungs. She grabs her stuff and sees Jean with her textbook in her hand.

"I feel like I aged just from standing here." Jean said.

"What do you have next?" Nick ask.

"I have physical education." Jean said.

"Same here." Alison said.

"Your teacher is Coach Hedge?" Nick ask.

"Yeah." Alison said.

"We have the same class together." Nick said.

"Oh." Alison said.

"Come on." Jean said as she walks away.

Alison is jogging around a football field with Jean besides her. She's huffing and puffing, but she continues running. She has to do five laps, but she has completed four laps.

"One more to go." Jean said.

"Come on cupcakes! Run! Run! All of you better run before I bring out the bat! I'll shoot a home run! You better run before I sing!" Coach Hedge threatens.

Alison runs as fast as her legs can take her. "No!" She yells at Coach Hedge.

_"Slice, slice, slice the beast gently by the throat_

_Cut, cut, stab, stab, killing the beast is such a dream"_

Coach Hedge sings in a _Row, row, row your boat _rhythm.

Alison finishes her laps. She's tired and is just about ready to pass out. Jean finishes her laps and is in the same condition Alison is in. Nick finished his laps before Alison and Jean.

"You girls have a nice pace." He compliments.

"I didn't want him singing." Alison said.

"How is that working out for you?" Jean ask.

"Not good." Alison said.

"Good job cupcakes." Coach Hedge congrats.

"Thanks." Jean said.

Coach Hedge sniffs the air. "What's that?" He ask.

"What?" Alison ask.

He approaches Alison and smells her. "Interesting." He said.

"It's coffee." Alison said.

"You smell different." Coach Hedge whispers.

"Sweat?" Alison.

"You smell familiar, but it's probably the coffee mixed with sweat." Coach Hedge said.

"Okay." Alison said.

"How come you have the coffee?" Coach Hedge ask.

"It's nothing." Alison said.

"I can teach you karate of you need it." Coach Hedge said.

"Thanks." Alison said. Coach Hedge walks away.

"That's weird." Nick said.

"Yeah." Jean said.

Alison shrugs, "He's naturally weird."

"Nick!" Some girls coo.

"Umm, I'll, umm, be back." Nick said. He jogs towards the group of girls.

"Why do I have a feeling the girls want to flirt with him?" Jean ask.

"You said it yourself, 'He's hot.' " Alison said.

"It's true." Jean said.

"I'll see you later girls." Nick said.

"Don't leave!" The girls yell.

"Sorry." Nick said. He jogs back to Alison and Jean.

"How come you came back quickly?" Alison ask.

"I wanted to come back with you guys." Nick said shyly.

"Why? You can be surrounded around by beautiful girls." Jean said.

"A girl can be beautiful, but a beautiful face doesn't last forever." He said.

"Okay?" Alison said with confusion.

"So, it matters on the inside." Jean said.

"Attention to detail." Nick said.

"I never thought if it that way." Alison said.

"A beautiful girl has a beautiful personality." Nick said as he looks at Alison.

"Oh." Alison walks forward and falls to the floor. She hits the dirt floor. "Dang it." She said. Alison gets up and pats herself.

"Like the first time we met." Nick remembers.

"Yeah." Alison said.

"You have dirt." Jean said.

"Let me help." Nick grabs Alison's face and gently wipes the dirt away with his hands.

"Thanks." Alison said.

"Your welcome." Nick said.

* * *

"It'll be a crime if Mary must serve a crime that she didn't commit." Andrew said.

"She did. She stabbed him. She _tried _to hide the evidence, but she failed." Reyna said.

"She did not." Andrew said stubbornly.

"She did." Reyna said fiercely.

"Order in the court." The judge orders. "We will continue this on Monday. Court dismissed."

"That felt heated." Luke said.

"Why did he show the video? Is he using the feel pity method?" Reyna ask.

"He is." Bianca said.

"We're still not sure if it worked." Beckendorf said.

"I'm excited for the weekend." Reyna said.

"Why?" Luke asks curiously.

"I don't have to think about this case for two days." Reyna said.

"Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but we still need to continue searching for evidence." Luke said.

"Can we do that on Sunday? Silena and I are spending the day together." Beckendorf said.

"I have archery practice tomorrow." Bianca said.

"I want a moment to myself." Reyna said.

"Fine." Luke said.

"So Sunday?" Beckendorf ask.

"Yeah." Bianca said.

"Okay." Luke said.

"See you Sunday." Reyna said. She grabs her suitcase.

"Bye." Luke, Beckendorf and Bianca said.

"Bye." Reyna said.

Reyna walks to her car and she sees Andrews. She has the urge to throw her suitcase at Andrew's face.

"Hi." Andrew said.

"What do you want? Did you come to argue again?" Reyna ask.

Andrew sighs, "There's a difference between work and outside of work." He said.

"You showed a video that was recorded many years ago." Reyna said.

"I don't want to argue." Andrew said.

Reyna gets inside of her car and starts the engine. Andrew steps inside. "Why are you here?"

"I need a ride." Andrew said.

"Out." Reyna orders.

Andrew stares at Reyna with huge puppy eyes. "Don't look at me like that."

"Fine." Andrew said. Reyna drives off.

* * *

After physical education, Alison has Spanish, Human Geography and English. She attends each one of them and hardly listens. She's tired from her jog. The bell rings. She gathers her things and waits for Jean.

"Any plan for the weekend?" Jean ask. She and Alison walk outside of school. Alison sees Nick and waves at him; he waves back and walks towards them. "He totally likes you."

"He doesn't." Alison said.

"Glad to see you girls." Nick said.

Alison hears a car beep. "That's my mom." Jean said.

"I'll call you later." Alison said.

Jean looks at Nick and Alison. "You better." She said smiling and left.

"Now there's two." Alison said.

Nick smiles. "Yeah."

"Any plans for this weekend?" Alison ask.

"Not much." Nick said.

"Oh." Alison said.

"You?" He ask.

"Nope." Alison said.

"Anything for the rest of the day?" Nick ask.

"No. Why?" She ask.

"Want to go to the mall later?" He ask.

"Sure." She's taken back by Nick's offer. She has talked to him since yesterday and now he wants to hang out with her.

"Great." He said.

"I hope your girlfriend doesn't mind." Alison said.

"Mackenzie? She's going out to get her nails done with Alexis." Nick said.

Alison scrunched her nose, "Okay."

"You don't like that?" He ask.

"It really isn't my thing." Alison said.

Nick laughs, "I figured."

"I have a question." Alison said.

"What is it?" Nick ask.

"How come you want to hang out with me?" She ask.

"You're a fun person to hang out with." Nick said.

"Even though, many people think I'm goth?" Alison ask.

"You're just not the girl I expected." Nick said.

"I never am." Alison said.

"You're the girl that wouldn't have been looked at twice." Nick said.

Alison smiles, "You did."

* * *

"How old is Alison?" Andrew ask.

"She's 14." Reyna answers. She's driving to Alison's school to pick her up.

"Do you have plans for this evening?" Andrew ask.

"No." Reyna grips the steering wheel.

"Want to go grab a coffee?" Andrew ask politely.

"I'm not sure." Reyna said.

"I'm not asking you on a date." Andrew said.

"Then?" Reyna ask.

"It's just two people getting to know each other." Andrew said.

"That's a date." Reyna said.

"A date would be if I asked, 'Reyna, would you go in a date with me?' It's not a date." Andrew said.

"It's a date on which you used different words." Reyna points out.

"It's just two people going out to grab coffee. It's not like I'm asking you to go inside my house and take a drink." Andrew said.

"I'm not that type of woman." Reyna said.

"I know. You're the type of women who's independent and bossy." Andrew said.

"I am not bossy." Reyna snaps.

"Sure you aren't." Andrew said sarcastically. "You're a person who needs to show their true color."

"Is that why you dressed 'very seductive' today?" Reyna ask.

"You are half correct; the other half is that I was in a good mood." Andrew said.

"Coffee?" Reyna ask.

"It can be iced coffee." Andrew said.

Reyna smiles. "I hope I don't regret this."

"You won't." Andrew said smiling.

"It's just gathering." Reyna said.

"I agree." Andrew agreed.

* * *

Alison and Nick made a agreement that they would meet up at the mall. She still finds it weird that Nick asked her, but she's okay with it. She sees her mom's car. She enters the car to see Andrew.

"Hi." Alison greets.

"Hi." Reyna said.

"Hey, twerp." Andrew said.

"Did you get the hot lady's number today?" Alison snaps.

Andrew shrugs, "I got a hidden beauty to say yes."

"Meow, go Andrew." Alison said.

"It's not a date." Andrew said.

"Then?" Alison ask.

"Just two friends grabbing coffee." Andrew said.

"Who happens to be a girl." Alison said.

"Yup." Andrew said.

"Or is it a guy?" Alison ask.

"No." Andrew answers quickly.

"Great. I hope you act like a gentlemen." Alison said.

"Alison, I'll be home about seven." Reyna said.

"Take your sweet time." Alison said.

Reyna smiles. "Okay?"

"Drive." Alison orders. Reyna narrows her eyes. "Please?"

"Fine." Reyna drives away.

* * *

**I know, I know, it's a HUGE chapter. Did you expect for the person at the door to be Alexis? I really hope you like it! Leave a review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Umm, hi. Please put your weapons down. Sorry it took long to update. hope this chapter makes up for it.**

* * *

**percyjackson2012: Thanks! I might put in Gwen but it's unlikely to out Annabeth and Percy but I'll mention them. :3**

**I am Bianca daughter of Hades: Thanks! Andrew is very, "Seductive." I try my very best for the court scene.:)**

**SailorMoonAddict: Nick really isn't up to anything. He'll tell Alison in the next chapter. There's going to be drama in the next chapter. Good prediction.:D**

**IamAnnabethdaughterofAthena: Gracias! *bows***

**greekgeek4ever: Okay, okay, I updated. Thanks.**

**Guest: Thanks, I try to make Alison relatable. **

**Guest: I will!**

**Guest: *applause* I'll give it a go:**

**Thanks for the review,**

**Please keep reading the tale, **

**A Twist in Fate**

**Guest: Okay.**

**Guest: I just did.:)**

**Kushina-Reyna: I like Andrew. Jason and Reyna will meet not sure if soon. I hope this chapter is worth the wait. I'll start working on the next one.:)**

**Guest: Sorry I haven't updated. I've been working on other upcoming stories that's why it took long to update. Once again, sorry. Yes, Luke, Bianca and Beckendorf are still demigods—it was hinted when Luke tried to unlock the door where Mr. S and Mr. H live. No, Reyna doesn't not know that they are demigods and they don't know that Reyna is a demigod either. Jason and Reyna will not meet yet. Just hold on a couple of chapter more and they will meet; I'm just trying to set everything up first. Good idea! You wouldn't mind me if I use some parts of it right?**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

_"__I like intelligent women. When you go out, it shouldn't be a staring contest."_

_-Frank Sinatra _

* * *

When Alison walks inside her home she drops her things and gets her lazy bum to the bathroom to take a shower. She wants to get the coffee smell out of her hair; Alison practically used a whole entire bottle of shampoo and conditioner.

She goes into her room and chooses a long sleeve light blue men's shirt that reaches under her rear end, black jeans and dark brown boots. Her mom purchased the dark boots for her a while ago since her mom thought that she needed something new in her closet; Alison swore to never wear them, but this is an exception. She gets up from her bed and walks around.

"These boots feel weird," Alison said smiling. She walked to the mirror and looked at herself. "I'm not so sure of the boots." Wearing boots are out of her comfort zone but she likes to challenge herself—no matter in what area.

"I just hope I don't do anything stupid," Alison said.

"I have dark brown combat boots," Alison said brightly.

"What can go wrong?" She ask herself and walks out of her room. Downstairs, Alison grabs Nick's jacket, keys, her wallet and heads out the door.

"I wish myself luck," Alison mutters.

* * *

Andrew and Reyna walk into a small coffeehouse. The coffeehouse has blue walls with portraits of sails and boats, dark wood floors, tables with an orange tablecloth, a small counter with a register and packaged coffee behind the counter.

"It's a very nice coffeehouse," Reyna said in awe.

"I told you. You were being so stubborn when I was telling you the directions," Andrew chimes.

Reyna scowls. "So you take plenty of girls here?" Reyna ask.

Andrew smiles and raises and eyebrow as he said, "Jealous?"

"Never," Reyna said.

"Let's take a seat," Andrew suggest. "You're the first one I ever took here." Reyna nods and follows Andrew to a table. Andrew pulls out her chair and Reyna freezes. She remembers:

_"Reyna, you look beautiful," Jason complimented. Reyna's lips turned slightly up. She had on a black cocktail dress with nude colored heels and her hair tied up into a bun._

_"Thank you. You aren't to bad yourself," Reyna said. Jason had on a black tux with a royal blue tie._

_"I look like a monkey," Jason muttered._

_"Well, I wasn't forced into this dress for nothing," Reyna said._

_"True," Jason agreed._

_Jason and Reyna walked into a fancy restaurant that had arched windows, tables with white tablecloths, and chandeliers that are heavily lit by candles. The restaurant had a romantic feel to it. She was glad she was going to spend time with Jason because they've been busy with school. _

_"Let's have a seat," Jason said as he pulled Reyna said._

_"Okay," Reyna said and sat on the chair._

_A waiter came and Jason and Reyna ordered champagne. After a minute or two, the waiter returned with two glasses of champagne and a opened bottle of champagne. _

_Jason held up his champagne. "A toast," Jason said._

_"A toast," Reyna agreed and toasted with Jason._

"Reyna," Andrew said.

"Oh, sorry," Reyna apologizes and sits on her chair. Andrew sits at his chairs and looks at Reyna with curiosity.

"Do I remind you of someone?" Andrew ask.

"No," Reyna lies.

"What's his name?" Andrew ask.

"What?" Reyna ask.

"What's his name?" Andrew repeats.

"Him?" Reyna said confuse.

"You don t fool me, Reyna," Andrew said. Andrew knows that Reyna is thinking of someone; lately, when Andrew says or does something she freezes and Andrew finds that odd.

"I was just thinking that its been a while that I've gone out," Reyna said.

"You can't resist my seductiveness?" Andrew teases.

"It annoys me," Reyna said.

"You haven't gone out in a while?" Andrew ask.

"Yeah," Reyna said.

"Can I ask you something?" Andrew ask.

"You already did," Reyna points out.

Andrew smiles. "How long has it been since you've gone out with someone?"

"I thought this was just a gathering between two people," Reyna said.

"Okay, how long has it been since you've had a gathering?" Andrew ask.

"I don't want to talk about it," Reyna said quickly.

Andrew nods. "Okay," he said.

"Can we order coffee?" Reyna ask.

"Why do I have a feeling you agreed to this just because so you get a cup of coffee?" Andrew ask suspiciously.

"You read my mind," Reyna said sarcastically. Andrew laughs.

* * *

Alison walks to the mall and waits outside of the mall entrance. She waits and waits.

"I was probably stood up," Alison mutters. It kind of stings for Alison to be stood up. She's never has hung out with a guy before. Sure, she has guy friends but she just talks to them.

"Sorry I'm late," Nick said. Alison looks at Nick to see that he has on a red polo shirt that has a green collar with dark blue jeans.

"It's okay," Alison said.

"We should go inside," Nick suggest. Alison nods and enters the mall. The mall is three stories high with plenty of department stores and white granite floor. Alison isn't a big fan of shopping, only if it involves buying water ballon, paper toilet an other things to pull of a prank with Jean. "Where should we go?" He ask.

Alison shrugs. "Wherever our feet takes us." Nick nods in agreement.

"Okay," he said while smiling.

"Is your girlfriend still getting her nails done?" Alison ask.

"I don't know," Nick said honestly.

"That was nice singing that Coach Hedge did today," Alison said sarcastically.

"Haha, he should join one of those singing realities show," Nick said while laughing.

"Don't encourage him," Alison said.

"True," Nick agreed.

"Nick!" Some girls yell. Nick and Alison turn to see the same girls from p.e calling Nick.

Alison sighs. "Go to your groupies," Alison said smiling. Nick hesitates but agrees and walks to the girls. "Groupies will be groupies."

"I'm hanging out with a friend," Alison hears Nick said.

"Who is she?" A girl ask. Alison considers sticking her head into a garbage can.

"She's a friend," Nick said.

"I want to go meet her," a girl said and starts to walk over to Alison. Alison turns and pretends she's looking at a department store clothes from the window.

"I'll see you girls at school," Nick said and walks to Alison.

"Girls drool over you," Alison said.

"They do not," Nick said.

"You should hear them in the locker room," she mutters.

"Not a bad idea," he said sheepishly.

"No, that's called suspension," Alison said.

"You should hear how some of the guys talked about you," Nick said.

Alison narrows her eyes on Nick. "What did they say?"

"That you looked nice today with that shirt and that it's a good change besides seeing your regular dark colored clothes," Nick said.

"That's all?" She ask. Alison expects them to say something far more worse that what Nick said.

"Yeah," he said.

"It's all 'cause of your girlfriend," she mutters.

"It's not a bad thing to be noticed at time," Nick said sincerely.

"You started talking to me because I fell in front of English class; if I wouldn't have fallen we wouldn't have started talking and this conversation wouldn't be happening," Alison said.

"True, but—" Nick said before Alison interrupts him.

"I'm not a beauty queen that can light up a room. You and I talked because of the embarrassment I went through. I'm the girl that gets bullied but is not afraid to talk back—I don't know why. I probably got my mom's fiery temper when she's mad," she said. She wants to say that she probably got her temper from her dad but she doesn't want to bring him up. He doesn't even deserve the title to be call a father. "I'm the girl that would rather sit in the back of the room rather than being in from of the room talking." Her eyes begin to sting a bit and she doesn't know why.

"I've noticed that," Nick said.

"Well, I just told you if you didn't notice," Alison said as she sniffs.

"Are you crying?" Nick ask with worries.

"No," Alison said.

Nick shruggs. "It's okay to tear up at times."

"Well, it isn't for me," Alison said seriously.

"Alison, look at me," he said softly.

"I've seen this before," Alison said.

"What?" Nick ask.

"It's usually two people look at each other in the eye and that's when they realize they like each other," Alison blurts out. Her eyes shot right open from embarrassment. Crap, she thought. She closes her eyes,

Nick laughs. "Yes, look at one another's eyes and love at first sight," he teases. Alison opens her eyes and punches his arm. "Ouch." He rubs his arm.

"Were you like that with your girlfriend?" _Or did you fell for what she was wearing._

"No, she just seemed nice at first," Nick said.

"How is that working out for you" She mutters.

"It's fine," Nick said.

Alison detects a tone in his voice that she doesn't know how to describe. His voice sounds unsure. "Does she know I'm with you?" She ask.

He shakes his head as he said, "No."

"I can already see her having a tantrum," she said.

He laughs. "Ice cream?"

"Sure," she said. Nick loops his arm around her's and walks. Alison is obviously shock by Nick but she tries not to show it. Together, they exit the mall.

* * *

Andrew orders two cups of ice coffee. The cups of ice coffee come by a waitress with red hair, albino skin and hazel color eyes.

"Just give me a call if you need anything," the waitress said cheerfully. "My name is Hazel." Hazel, Reyna remembers the name. Reyna remembers that she used to think that Hazel was a unfit leader and was too nice towards others. Reyna was wrong and Hazel turned out to be a good leader and capable to put her foot down when she needed to, especially with Jason and Percy.

"Thank you," Andrew said. The waitress walks away.

"I'm surprise you didn't get her number," Reyna said as she sips her ice coffee. The ice coffee is sweet and has a taste of a hint of vanilla.

Andrew chuckles. "I don't go around getting whomever's number," he said. "When will your witness arrive?"

Reyna places her ice coffee down and looks at Andrew. "Is that why you made come with you?"

"No, I asked you to accompany me so that I can get to know you," he said.

"How is that working out for you?" Reyna crosses her eyes.

"It was going well up until I opened my big mouth," he said shyly.

"Have you tried that trick before?" Reyna ask.

"It usually works," he said grinning.

Andrew easily annoys Reyna but she finds his annoyance quite amusing—it's familiar. "I'm not sure it's working now," she said with annoyance in her voice.

"Tell me about yourself." It's obvious Andrew wants to change subject.

"What do you want to learn?" Reyna ask. She takes a sip of ice coffee.

"How about your childhood?" He suggests.

"That's personal," she said sternly.

"It's not."

"It is."

"Is not."

"It is," Reyna said. His annoyance reminds Reyna of Alison when she wants to annoy her and Jason, but she finds this refreshing.

"Do you want me to tell you about mine?" He ask her.

Reyna's lips slightly turn up. "I don't want to learn about your prime years on the Vegas strip." Her tone is serious; she really doesn't want to hear those stories.

Andrew laughs. "I said childhood not when I was adolescent."

Reyna looks at Andrew slightly shock as she ask, "You were on the Vegas strip when you were a teen?"

"No, I was not. I just passed by there a lot. My father had a lot of business there so I would sometimes accompany him."

"What kind of business?" Reyna ask curiously.

"He practice law there but commercial," Andrew replies and sips ice coffee.

"That's why you entered the law business?"

"Partly, I had a passion for law but in criminal law and in politics to be specific."

"Your passion for criminal law is much bigger," Reyna said with realization.

"It's a mix."

Reyna thinks on what Andrew said. She talks slowly and carefully as she said, "Meaning on how controversial some laws can be and the process of a bill to be made a law."

"Correct, I enjoy finding loopholes and doing something new. I believe it would be very boring if I were to do the same exact things everyday."

"You have to think of the case you're working on, gather evidence and speak in front of a courtroom while convincing them," Reyna said.

"Every case is different," Andrew reminds.

"I agree."

"You're a smart women," he compliments.

Reyna raises and eyebrow as she said, "You thought I was unintelligent?" She debates with herself to throw her coffee on Andrew's suit.

"I'm such a big mouth," he mutters as he covers his face with his hands.

* * *

"I heard ice creams helps," Nick said.

_You've probably seen your girlfriend shove her mouth with ice cream. _"With what?" She ask innocently but yet dangerously.

"It deliver smarticles particles," he said as he smiles sheepishly.

_Nice save, bro. _"If you eat too much you're probably likely to have diabetes with all its sugar contents," she said.

"What kind do you want?" He ask. Alison and him enter an ice cream shop that has 60s look to it. The inside of the shop has white tile floors, white and light-green stripe walls on two walls, the other two walls have red and white stripes, see through freezers with buckets fill with ice cream where a large counter connects, a menu board that's written with many color, pink color tables The outside of the shop is made of bricks, double windows with lavender color curtains, and the entrance is at the left end of the shop.

"Have you been here before?" Alison ask.

"A few times," Nick replies.

"What do you recommend?" She and Nick walk to the freezer and look at the variety of ice cream.

"You aren't the type of girl that counts calories right?"

_Umm, no._ "Sure, is there any low-fat ice cream?" She said sarcastically.

Nick shakes his head while smiling. "Sorry," he said playfully.

Alison does a dramatic pose by placing the back of her hand against her forehead and pulls her head back while sniffing. "The horror!" She exclaims.

"Hush, before we get kicked out," he said.

"Which ice cream?" She ask.

"Ice cream soda?" Nick suggest.

"You're not luring me to a ice cream that tastes like horse poop right?" She glances at Nick suspiciously.

"It's my evil plan."

"You do not fool me," Alison said in a horrible Chinese accent. Nick and Alison laugh.

"What can I do for you two?" An elderly man appears. The man has white crinkle skin, warm light-green eyes, and a pink apron under his white crisp t-shirt.

"Two ice cream sodas," Nick orders. Alison takes out her wallet to pay but Nick stops her. "I'll pay."

"Okay," she said unsure. Nick pays the old man and the old man gives him two cups containing vanilla bean ice cream and two cans of coke. She and Nick sit at a table near the window where Nick hands her her ice cream and soda.

"Do you know what to do next?" Nick ask.

"I say thank you?"

"Besides that," he said smiling.

"You mean me eating it?"

"No."

"Do I eat it with shoving a scoop of ice cream in my mouth and taking a sip of soda?"

"No."

"I dump the ice cream on you?"

"Please don't."

"I dump the soda inside the cup?"

"Took you long enough."

"Shut up." She uncaps her soda and pours some of it into her ice cream. The coke fizzles when it meets the ice cream.

"First time you had this?" Nick ask as he stuffs his mouth with ice cream soda.

"Yeah," she said. She takes a scoop of ice cream and puts it in her mouth; she can taste the mixture of the coke with the flavor of the ice cream—it takes good.

"You tasted something knew."

"I earned smarticles particles," she said sarcastically.

"Shut up," he said as he stares at his ice cream soda.

Alison looks around the shop to see a couple feeding each other ice cream and having a staring contest. She bites her tongue not to laugh. Open wide, she jokes.

"What's so funny?" Nick turns and sees what Alison is seeing and smiles.

"I wonder which one back down," Alison said.

"It's the battle of the century," Nick says huskily.

"You're so pretty," the boy said. The boy has light brown skin, light brown eyes, dark brown curly hair with light blue jeans and a neon green shirt on.

"No, you're pretty," the girl gushes. She has a pale skin, freckles, long auburn color hair tie into a ponytail, a long light blue skirt and a white short sleeve shirt.

Alison and Nick bite their tongues to avoid laughing. Alison finds this cute but very funny at the same time. "Love," she said.

"That's a lot of display," Nick said.

"Really?" She ask sarcastically.

"They just stare at each other as if they're lost," Nick said.

"Cupid probably did this or Venus really wants to see romance," she mutters.

"Mythology?" He ask.

"My mom talks a lot about mythology," Alison clarifies.

"Why?"

"My mother is half-Roman."

"So you're one-quarter of a Roman?"

"I don't know," Alison said honestly. Her mom used to tell her a lot of stories involving Greek mythology, roman celebrations and traditions, and talk about Roman gods when she was younger.

"Which myths do you know?" Nick ask curiously.

"Depends, which myth do you want to know?"

"Perseus," Nick answers. Alison takes a spoonful of her now slowly melting ice cream and begins to tell Nick the myth of Perseus and Medusa.

* * *

"I've taken notice," Reyna said.

"I know you've taken notice," Andrew said.

"You were going to tell me about childhood." She reminds.

"Well, I was born in Tennessee but moved to Cali when I was a year old. My mother was a sweet petite woman that stayed at home and took care of me—I'm the only child beside my adopted brother, Edmund," Andrew said.

"Adoptive?" Reyna ask.

"My mother couldn't carry another child, and if she did she would've probably died and my father didn't want to risk it."

"It seems he loves your mother very much."

"Yes, he loves her, but he was unfaithful to her. Remember that I told you about me being at the Vegas strip? I was usually dropped off at a hotel and my father would go to the Vegas strip to get with a female that happens to be there. One day, I followed him and discovered where he went. Soon after, he found out that I knew his secret and said if I told my mother it would break her poor heart—my mother had a weak heart because she was very extremely careful and always on her toes when I had any sort of illness and still up until this very day. I kept my mouth shut because I didn't want to cause my mother any pain.

Anyways, Edmund was my father's brother son who tragically passed away due to cancer at the age of 36 and a wife who left him and Edmund days after she gave birth to Edmund. I'm older than Edmund but only by a month. Before Edmunds's father death, his last final wish was for my parents to take Edmund and treat Edmund as if he was their son. My parents were hesitant at first because they had me but mother was told that she couldn't bear anymore kids; she wanted me to have a sibling so she convinced my father to take in Edmund which my father agreed," Andrew said.

"How was Edmund treated?" Reyna ask.

"Edmund and I grew up as brother with my parents treating us equally. Edmund was a momma's boy and I was more independent and seek to learn more about law so I followed my father." Andrew sips his ice coffee.

"You still communicate with Edmund?" Reyna ask.

Andrew nods. "Of course, we don't talk a lot because, usually, both of us are busy but we do talk."

"What career does he have?" Reyna ask.

"He's a film director," Andrew said.

"Has his mother tried to reach out to him?" Reyna ask.

"Yes, but for money. She's a drug addict even though she denies it. Edmund calls her by her real name not by, 'Mom.' Your turn."

"How come you told me all of this?"

Andrew shrugs. "You were such a good listener that I kept talking and talking."

Reyna remembers when she had her conversation with Annabeth at the Garden of Bacchus at Camp Jupiter when Annabeth talked nonstop about Camp Half-Blood.

"I was born in Puerto Rico alongside my older sister. My father was a general in the military. Some events occurred that caused me and my sister to come here to the U.S," Reyna said. She's being honest with him but she doesn't want to tell him about her past.

"You attended school here?" Andrew ask.

_No, I found myself with a wolf goddess name Lupa where she tested me to see if I was worthy enough to pass to go to Camp Jupiter. I was worthy so I made it to Camp Jupiter. I went on quests—with a specific person I will not name—and my ranks grew until I became co-praetor of the 12th Legion and Senator of Rome. _"Yes." She did attend school at New Rome.

"How about Alison?"

"What about Alison?" She's very protective over her daughter when someone brings her up—she's like a mama bear protecting her cub.

"You obviously had her when you were very young," Andrew said.

"Yes, I had her when I was young and like a mere child myself." She has a good feeling what this conversation is leading to.

"Does Alison still have contact with her father?"

"I don't want to talk about it." She snaps.

"My apologies, I just asked out of curiosity," Andrew said sincerely.

"It's just hard to talk about it." She sips her coffee.

"I understand."

"How?"

"I have clients who talk about their children and are tight lipped about the other parent."

"They have their reasons." Reyna has her reason on not wanting to talk about Alison's dad.

"Yes, I suppose they do."

* * *

"Cool," Nick said with interest.

"Yeah, Perseus used his shield against Medusa," Alison said.

"So I have a friend that's a walking dictionary on mythology." He teases.

Alison scowls as she said, "No, I am not a walking dictionary."

"You're smart on those things. You can be a daughter of Athena."

Alison laughs. "Athena swore to be a virgin."

"I know, but if she had a kid you'd be the ideal child."

"Am I wise?"

"Yes, you make wise comebacks."

Alison couldn't help smiling. "I'm not an architecture freak and not afraid of spiders."

"Arachne?"

"A weaver who challenged Athena into a contest and got turned into a spider when she said she was a better weaver than Athena herself."

"The message: don't say you're better than a god."

"Exactly."

"If I were a demigod who would be my godly parent." _Venus. "_You better not say Aphrodite or Venus." Alison laughs.

She looks at Nick with concentration trying to figure out which godly parent he would be. "Apollo, Mercury, or Pluto."

"Pluto?"

She shrugs. "You have this edge to you."

"Well, I see you as a daughter of Jupiter or a god of war." He points his spoon at Alison.

"Mars?"

"Or the Roman goddess."

"Bellona?"

"I thought it was boloney."

"Imagine a cross with kid of Jupiter and child of Bellona."

Alison imagines it for a second. "That equals to a kid that can kick some serious butt."

"True, but mythology isn't real."

She snorts. "You should hear my mom talk about it."

"My best guess is that she loves mythology."

"Yup." Alison looks out the window to see the trees gently swaying side to side. I_t looks nice for a walk in the park. Park._ "Crud." She gets up from her seat.

"What wrong?" He ask concern.

"I had to meet up with friend that I know and possibly his friend."

"His?" Alison swears that she can hear jealousy in his voice but ignores it.

"Yeah."

"Is he your boyfriend?"

_Jason is old like my mom._ "Yeah."

"What?" He's slightly shock.

"He's a boy and he's my friend."

"Oh," he said in relief.

"What's so bad with me having a boyfriend? You have a girlfriend."

"Yeah, a guy putting up with your sharp tongue."

She slaps his arm. "You can join me." She offers.

"Sure, I was planning to spend my whole time with you anyways."

"Alright."

* * *

"They do," Reyna said.

"Do you have any hobbies?" Andrew ask.

"I enjoy reading."

"Any favorite type of genre?"

"I enjoy reading mystery, autobiographies, biographies and mythology."

"No romance?"

Love stories are a guilty pleasure for Reyna but she hardly ever reads them. "Rarely." She confesses.

* * *

Alison and Nick left the ice cream shop and walk to the park.

"This is where you guys meet?"

"Yup."

They walk up the hill to see Jason and Dakota arguing.

"What do you mean I have to go on a Kool-Aid diet?" Dakota demanded.

"You have to cut the sugar," Jason said.

"I'm immune to get diabetes!" Dakota exclaims.

"It doesn't hurts to cut down a bottle!" Jason exclaims.

"You two sound like a old married couple." Alison smirks.

"Finally, I thought you weren't coming," Dakota said.

"Hi, Kota, hi, Jason," Alison greets.

"Who's your friend?" Jason ask.

"Or boyfriend," Dakota said mysteriously.

"Shut up," Alison said.

Jason gets up from the floor and holds out his hand to Nick. "My name is Jason. Jason Grace."

Nick takes Jason's hand. "Nick. Nick Williams."

"Nice to meet you," Jason said as he releases Nick.

Dakota gets up and shakes Nick's hand. "My name is Dakota," Dakota said.

"I just notice that I'm the only girl," Alison said.

"Smart girl," Dakota said.

"Took you long enough to notice," Jason mutters.

"Is that an insult?" Alison ask.

Dakota slaps Jason's arm. "It could've taken longer for Bobby."

"Yeah, 'cause he's Bobby," Jason said.

"How did it go with the waitress?" Alison ask.

Jason laughs. "It went wonderful."

Dakota blushes. "I almost got hit with a pan," he mutters.

Alison laughs. "Did she try to get Jason's number?"

Dakota smiles. "She was putting herself out there."

"Hush," Jason warns.

" 'Call me if you need anything,' "Dakota said then winks.

"Shut up," Jason said. Dakota and Alison laugh.

"I should've stayed," Alison said as she wipes a tear from her eyes.

"Yup," Dakota said.

Jason looks at Nick. "Do you see what I hang out with?" He ask Nick.

"Well, I hang out with one of them at school," Nick said.

"You do?" Dakota ask.

"You two aren't dating right?" Jason ask.

"No!" Alison exclaims.

"I have a girlfriend already," Nick said.

_A girlfriend that I am not fond of._ "He does," Alison said.

"I thought you two were dating," Dakota said as he points at Alison and Nick.

"He's my friend," Alison said.

* * *

"It's nice talking to someone like this," Andrew said.

"Why?" Reyna ask.

"Because when I go out, the person that I'm with usually stare at me. I feel like I'm having a staring contest."

"Then you go out with people with the possibility of having no brain," Reyna said.

"It's nice to have a conversation with a smart person," Andrew said.

"I thought you said that you thought of me as unintelligent?"

"I didn't know you were an easy person to talk to."

"Don't judge a book by its." She chimes.

"Have I annoyed you?"

"Yes," Reyna said. Andrew laughs.

* * *

**Leave a review! I'll star on the next chapter.**


	10. Chapter 10

**I'm so sorry that I haven't updated but I do have a reason why I haven't updated. Recently I moved and everything was hectic. Once I settled into my new place, I didn't have internet connection. Everything was plugged in but something was wrong and had to have someone come in. I begged/pleaded my mom to call the company etc. Until final someone came and fixed it.**

**I appreciated all the reviews that were made and I wanted to say thank you! This chapter is 7,200+ words (if you take away everything that's bolded). There are some surprises that you guys will be shocked at and something you guys have begged all along but I've only given a small tasted. **

**Anyways, enough of my prattling and enjoy this story.**

* * *

"_I'm the not the girl who always has a boyfriend. I'm the girl who rarely has a boyfriend."_

_-Taylor Swift_

* * *

"What do you wanna do?" Jason asks Alison.

Alison shrugs as she said, "Doesn't matter."

"Anything you wanna do?" Jason asks Nick.

"I'm fine by whatever," Nick said between sighs.

"How about Kota?" Alison asks as she looks at Dakota.

"No," Jason buts in, "Kota is gonna want to chug down a gallon of Kool-Aid with you guys.

"No, diet Kool-Aid," Dakota corrects.

"Is that even possible?" Nick curiously asks.

"Anything is possible," Dakota said in a deep raspy voice.

"I'll get Gwen over here," Jason threatens.

Dakota narrows his eyes towards Jason, "You wouldn't."

"Try me," he said.

"Okay, you would," Dakota believes.

"I have an idea," Jason said.

"Speak up," Alison said.

"Baseball," Jason said in awe.

"Do you have a baseball bat with you?" She asks.

"Yeah, why?" He asks.

_So that I can swing at you._ "Nothing," she said.

"No one let Alison have the bat," Jason warns the others.

Dakota laughs. "I would like to see that."

Jason glares at Dakota as he said, "I would like to see Gwen pound you."

"Well, I'll tell you that you let me drink _two _gallons of Kool-Aid," Dakota threatens.

"Who's Gwen?" Alison asks.

"Jason, where's the baseball bat?" Dakota ask.

"Besides Alison, you don't get the bat," Jason said.

"Okay, that will be boring," Alison confesses.

"Would you like some groupies with that?" Dakota ask in would-you-like-some-fries-with-that.

Jason scowls. "No," he said.

"Jason," Dakota said flirtatiously as he twirls his black curly hair.

He smiles. "Kota, you're worse than Leo," Jason said in annoyance.

"Flame on!" Dakota yells in a high pitch voice.

Alison pats Jason's shoulder, and said, "You know you love him."

He rolls his eyes. "No, I don't."

"You worry about my health," Dakota said smiling.

"I did that because of─" Jason said.

"I'm one of the few who can put up with your sorry butt, and because you love me as a brother," Dakota said then fiercely hugs himself.

"No─" Jason said.

"You call me by my childhood name," Dakota chimes. He knows Jason like the back of his hand; they've been through thick and thin and they're still best buds.

"Well, what Ali─" Jason said.

"We swore to be brothers," Dakota said. He remembers how annoyed he was with Jason following him, but now, he's glad Jason did it because their friendship blossom.

"Okay, that was because─" Jason said.

"We got stung by bees," Dakota reminds.

Jason laughs. "That was─"

"One of the most stupid things we've ever done," Dakota finishes.

"You guys were childhood buddies?" Alison asks.

Dakota slings his arm over Jason's shoulder. "I've put up with Jason ever since we were 6 years old."

"Wow," Nick said.

Jason nods in agreement. "I've put up with him," Jason said.

"I feel sorry for you, Kota," Alison sympathetically. Dakota burst out laughing.

"Okay," Jason said grumpily.

* * *

"I know you love it," Andrew said then winks.

"Nope," Reyna said.

"Goody two shoes," he mutters.

Reyna remembers:

_Jason and Reyna were huddles together on the couch from a rainy day in New Rome. Reyna had on purple silk pajamas, while Jason had on marine blue colored pants with a gray hooded sweater under his purple Camp Jupiter shirt. Together, they watched a sappy movie that Reyna put on to just annoy Jason._

"_I just noticed something," Jason said._

"_Which is?" Reyna asked._

"_It's always a good girl who falls for a guy that others believe don't suit her," Jason said._

"_You didn't break your head from thinking of that right?" Reyna asked him._

_Jason chuckled. "You're like that," he said._

"_A good girl?" She asked. _

"_Yup," he said. _

"_I am not," Reyna retorted._

"_You are a goody two shoes," Jason taunted. _

"_How?" Reyna challenged._

"_You follow rules," he said._

"_I don't always," Reyna said._

"_Like?" He asked._

"_I helped delay the Romans," she said. She risked her neck to delay the Romans because if it was discovered that Reyna was delaying them the word would've quickly spread to Octavian and he would've charged her from treasury._

"_Only one time," Jason said._

"_Whatever," Reyna grunted._

"_Goody two shoes," Jason said under his breath. Reyna punched him in the arm._

"Have you dated?" Andrew asks.

"I see this is a personal question," Reyna said.

"Indeed," Andrew agrees.

"This is a question that I am not implied to answer," she said.

Andrew crosses his arm and pouts. "Any boyfriends?"

Reyna quickly thinks of Jason, but then shakes it off. Jason was her first everything: first crush, first time she held hands with a boy, the first guy that ever flirted with her, first kiss…

"What time period are you referring to?" She asks.

"Let's start from the beginning," he suggests.

Reyna thinks for a minute that she's insane that she's going to answer a few of Andrew's questions. "My birth?" She jokes.

A small chuckle escapes from Andrew's thin lips. "Who was your first boyfriend?" He ask as he raises an eyebrow.

_Jason._ "He was a blond," she said, then takes a sip of ice coffee.

"He had luscious blond hair, okay," Andrew said.

Reyna feels she's choking from the ice coffee and puts it down as she reaches for a napkin to wipe her mouth. "You twisted my words," Reyna said, but with a very small smile.

She might have a beautiful smile if she were to smile widely, Andrew thinks. "Go on," he encourages.

"He has electric blue eyes," she whispers. Remembering Jason's eye color is extremely painful for her.

"That make your heart swoon, and girls drool," he said.

She rolls her eyes, but continues as she said, "He was well-built."

Andrew flexes his bicep─ he's well-built. "Are you describing me but with other physical characteristics?" He teases.

"You wish," she seriously said as she throws her napkin at him.

* * *

"Remember when Bobby dragged us to the Baths to see the girls," Dakota said while laughing. Jason's face darkens, but Dakota doesn't notice. "You were convinced to see _her." _Thunder booms from the sky.

"What the heck?" Alison said with confusion.

"The sky seems to perfectly match his mood," Nick observantly said.

"Didn't you see the weather report today?" Dakota asks. "There's a 73% of thunder." He doesn't even watch the weather, but it sounds good.

"It hardly ever thunders here in Cali," Alison suspiciously.

"It does thunder," Nick said, but suspicious as well.

_It's probably a coincidence._ "You mean _her?"_ Alison asks. She looks at Jason, and sees a wistful expression on his face.

"Yeah," he whispers.

"Wanna go get a soda?" Dakota asks. He hates seeing Jason down like this.

"Sure," Alison said.

"I don't want to go to the pizza shop," Jason said quickly.

"Dang it," Alison said as she snaps her fingers. He chuckles.

"There's a nacho stand," Nick suggests.

"I want nachos," Alison declares.

"We must do what Miss Bossy tells us," Nick said with sadness in his voice. Jason snorts to avoid laughing.

Alison glares at Jason, and said, "'I'll do anything, _anything.'_"

"Shut up," he said. Jason doesn't want to remember the waitress.

"You and Nick can go get the nachos, while Alison and I go to a nearby store to buy some cans of pop," Dakota tells Jason.

"Pop?" Jason asks.

"Soda," Dakota clarifies.

"Are you okay with this?" Nick asks Alison.

She nods, and said, "I am. What about you?"

"I'm good. Please, don't do anything I wouldn't do," Nick pleads.

Alison feels slightly touch from Nick's word, but she shakes it off. _He's my amigo._ "You ask too much," she said.

"Kota, nothing stupid," Jason said.

"Okay, Alison and I will just have a serious discussion," Dakota said as he wraps his arm around Alison's shoulder.

"I'm not looking forward to this," Alison said.

"Kota─" Jason said.

Dakota loops his arm around Alison and pulls her away. "Bye!" He yells.

* * *

"I have wished," Andrew said sarcastically.

"That's nice to know," Reyna replies with the same sarcasm.

Andrew locks his eyes on Reyna with deep concentration as if her life depends on it. He quickly shakes his head. "I'm guessing you don't have much of a love life."

Reyna knows if Andrew would've told someone else what he told her he would've gotten a nice slap in the face. "Yes," she said. "I'm alone but with my daughter, but I'm fine with it."

"Well said," Andrew said as he shakes his head in agreement.

"Thanks," she said. Reyna looks out the window and sees the sun setting down to finish a day. She thinks of Apollo, and imagines him on his chariot. _It's getting late._

"I know that it's getting late," Andrew said as if he read her mind. Reyna is a bit taken back. "It's just you a look on your face, and I knew you were going to say that it's late."

"We should get going," Reyna said.

"Why?" Andrew whines.

"You're such a big baby," Reyna said as she shakes her head.

"I'll take that as a compliment," he said.

"I had a good feeling you would," she said.

"See? We're getting along," Andrew said cheerfully.

"Ha-ha, no," she said seriously.

"Do you hear that?" Andrew asks.

"What?" Reyna asks with concern.

"That's called my heart, that's breaking," Andrew sadly said while being dramatic.

"Whatever," she said.

* * *

Nick is very quiet and Jason feels uncomfortable. Nick chuckles. "Does the silence make you uncomfortable?" He asks.

Jason chuckles. "Yup," he admits. The two of them were walking to the edge of the park to a nacho stand.

Nick chuckles too. "How long do you know Alison?"

"A couple of days."

"Really? You guys get along so well."

"Yeah, we do."

"It's almost like a daughter and father thing."

"Like Alison is my kid?"

Nick shrugs. "I guess."

Jason feels a chill run down his spine. He doesn't have children. Alison's temper truly reminds Jason of Reyna. Reyna. Jason longs to see talk to her, or to just have a small glimpse of her. Jason remembers when he and Reyna would sometimes talk about having kids one day; he doesn't want any children of his own, but only if she's the mother of his kids. "We just bumped into one another," Jason said.

"Oh," Nick said as if it makes a lot of sense.

"You got a girlfriend?" Jason asks.

"Yup. Do you have a girlfriend?"

Jason has dated a few girls, but only because he was practically held against his will. Sure, the girls were nice, but they just weren't what Jason wants. Girls do capture his attention, but only when they either have glossy black hair, dark color eyes or the tan skin Reyna has or had; the few girls only have his attention for a few minutes until he really looks at them, and realize it isn't Reyna. "I've only dated. What's your girlfriend's name?"

"Mackenzie," Nick proudly said, but with a very small ting of bitterness.

"Does Alison like her?" Jason notice the look Alison had when she said Nick has a girlfriend.

"They really don't get along."

"Jealousy?"

"Alison is an easy-going girl. She's bright even though it really isn't shown when you first look at her."

"Mackenzie just doesn't like her."

"Why not?" Jason demands.

"I have a few theories," Nick said. What Nick said reminds Jason of Annabeth when she's going to talk smart or when Percy imitates her before Annabeth finds out and makes him sleep on the couch until they kiss and make-up.

"Enlighten me," Jason said. He thinks Nick is an okay kid.

* * *

"Any boyfriends?" Dakota asks.

Alison chuckles. "This is a conversation I should have with my mom."

"Have you had the birds and the─"

"I don't want that conversation," she interrupts.

"Answer the original question," Dakota said.

"Or what?" She challenges.

"You will feel the wrath of The Bobby," Dakota playfully threatens.

She smiles. "I'd like to know Bobby someday."

"A day will come," Dakota said.

"Oh," Alison said.

"Answer the original question," Dakota said.

"No, I don't have a boyfriend," she confesses.

"I thought Nick was your boyfriend," he confesses.

Alison scrunches her nose at the thought of her and Nick dating. _No._ "You guessed wrong."

"How about a love life?"

"Why do you have a sudden interest in that department of my life?"

"I need to hear some romance."

"Why?"

"Those Nicholas Spark's books aren't doing it."

"You read them?"

"Gwen reads them."

"Is she your girlfriend?"

"No, she is not my girlfriend. We're just dating."

"That makes her your future girlfriend. How long have you guys dated?"

"I asked her out when we were 18."

"How is it possible that you haven't asked her to be your girlfriend?"

"I almost pooped in my pants when I asked her because I was afraid of rejection."

"You're fine on how things are?"

"Yeah," he said. Dakota really is fine on how things are going with Gwen; they act the same way when they were young, but a few tokens of affection are involve.

"Who is the girl who has Jason's heart?" She really wants to know more about the girl because she made Jason fall for her, but hard.

"She's a girl Jason has known ever since they were twelve."

"They were childhood lovers?"

"No, they wanted to rip each others heads of at first." Dakota remembers that Gwen had to hold Reyna down when she wanted to strike Jason, and how Jason really pushed it to tick her off.

"What's her name?"

"Ask Jason." Dakota knows that Jason doesn't like hearing Reyna's name because he feels guilty.

"Tell me," she pleads.

"Knowing you, you'll tell Jason her names when you get mad at him and he'll ask you how do you know her name, and my neck will be on the line." Dakota grabs his neck as if checking it's still there.

"Can you at least tell me how she looks like?"

"She's a girl."

Alison rolls her eyes. "I didn't know that," she sarcastically said.

"I'll tell you when we get to the liquor store."

"Why not now?" she complains.

"I need to think what's on the line when I tell you."

"Your neck," Alison innocently said.

"I know," Dakota grumbles.

* * *

"My first theory is that she's probably jealous of Alison," Nick said.

Jason bites his bottom lip. "Explain."

"Alison is a carefree sort of person, and she really doesn't care what people think about her."

"I'd like to hear the other theory," Jason scientifically said.

"Alison is the only girl who Mackenzie hasn't broken her spirit, but really is trying."

The boys make it the nacho stand. The man working at the nacho stand is a chubby African-American with yellow teeth but has his two front teeth missing, a flat nose, and gray wispy curly hair. He has on a yellow apron, dirty blue jeans, and a white shirt.

"What can I do for you?" The man said in a New Orleans' accent.

"We'll have four baskets of nachos," Jason orders.

"For your lady friends," he said then winks.

"No, I don't have─"

"Hot nachos coming up," the man said. He goes to his metal stand, grabs four paper baskets, nachos, and he grabs pours hot cheese. Nick takes out his wallet, but Jason stops him.

"I'll pay," Jason said as he fishes out his wallet.

"I'll pay," Nick insist.

"We'll pay half," Jason said. Jason and Nick equally pay for the nachos.

"Drinks?" the man said.

"Kota did this on purpose," Jason said with realization.

Nick shrugs. "He likes Alison."

Jason devilishly grins. "Do you like Alison?"

* * *

"I could die this evening, and you wouldn't care," Andrew dramatically said.

"You're not bad," Reyna comments on his acting skills.

"I hear Oscar bells ringing," Andrew chimes.

"You're probably hearing your death bells," Reyna said.

He shakes his head. "Nope."

"We should go," Reyna said.

"I have to use the big boy bathroom," Andrew announces.

"Why did I want to know that?"

"I just wanted you to know."

"I can imagine you telling your date that you have to use the bathroom."

"Would you like to know what I'll do?"

Reyna rapidly shakes her head; she doesn't want to know about his business. "No, I don't want to know."

"I'm very good at descriptions," he said while smirking.

"I'm very good at flipping you, and giving you a possible black eye," she icily threatens.

Reyna's comment wipes off Andrew's smirk. "No thank you."

"You're dismissed," she said as if she's a teacher.

Andrew salutes her as if he's a soldier and she's a general. It reminds Reyna when she was praetor of Rome. "See you in a bit." He walks away. Reyna reflects the time she just spent with Andrew, and she admits that it's going well.

A man sits on the chair that Andrew previously was in. The man is bald, has white skin, a parrot like nose with a green shirt, and white pants. "Hello beautiful," the man said.

Reyna smirks. _Great, the first time was with Bianca, and those two dorks who were hitting on us._ "Hello," she formally said. Reyna likes to be polite, but when someone upsets her she has no hesitation to snap at them.

"How come you're hanging out with a loser like him?" She knows he's referring to Andrew.

Reyna icily smiles as if he's a clown that's trying to amuse her, but is failing miserably. "The only loser who I see is you."

The man smiles as if satisfy with her answer or was expecting it. "It's sweet how you're defending him."

Reyna looks out the window and takes a deep breath before she's about to lose it. "He is not my boyfriend. I don't want a boyfriend. I rarely have one."

"I can be it."

"Leave me alone before I do something about it."

"Well, you said you were─"

"That I don't have a boyfriend and rarely has one," Reyna finishes, but with an edge to her voice.

"You heard the lady," Andrew said. He stands in front of the table as he glares at the man.

"You heard him," Reyna said. The man quickly glances at Reyna and gets up, and walks away. "I can take care of myself," she said as stares at her ice coffee cup.

"I know, but it doesn't change the fact that I was annoyed by him," Andrew said.

"You heard?"

"I heard towards the end."

"If it helps, I was really annoyed too."

Andrew chuckles. "I can tell because you threatened him."

* * *

Alison and Dakota walk into the liquor store. The liquor store has dirty plywood floors, aisles of goods, freezers on two sides of the store fill with dairy products, soda and juice, and in the center of the store is a lit light bulb with a fan attach to it. They walk to the freezer and open it by pulling the handle.

"What do you want?" Alison asks.

"Is there any Kool-Aid packets?" Dakota asks.

"Jason is not gonna be happy with this," Alison said.

Dakota half heartily waves at her. "Jason can't confess the brotherly love he has for me."

"He did confess that you guys are best friend when I first met you at the pizza shop," she remembers.

"True."

"I don't want Coke."

"Why not?"

"I had an ice cream soda a while ago."

"With Nick," Dakota said as he wiggles his eyebrows.

"Shut up," she said.

He smiles. "How about you and Nick get Gatorade?" Dakota suggests.

"I don't want that," Alison said as if she's a five-year old.

"Snapple."

"What kind?"

"Apple."

"Grab two."

Dakota grabs two bottles of Snapple, and hands them over to Alison. "I still want Kool-Aid," he wistfully said.

"At least get something else," she pleads.

"Monster."

"It has way too much sugar."

"Redbull."

"Sugar," she reminds.

"Rockstar."

"Kota, either you select or I will."

"Well then," he said as he grabs a bottle of water.

"That's it?"

"Well the Kool-Aid has to leave my system somehow," Dakota said as if it's obvious.

"How about Jason?"

"Are there any drinks that taste nasty?" Dakota innocently asks. Alison laughs.

"I don't think so."

"I'll get him a Coke."

"Okay."

Alison and Dakota walk to the counter for a Hindu guy that has on dark pink turban, an orange button down shirt, and flow-y white pants to ring them up. The man places the drinks in a small plastic bag, and hands it to Dakota. "Have a nice day," he said.

They walk out, but in silence. Alison would've usually said that it's an uncomfortable silence, but it feels comfortable with Dakota.

"Look what the cat dragged in," a female voice said. Alison freezes from shock, but then turns to face Mackenzie. Mackenzie is at the entrance of a Starbuck's store. She has on peanut color UGGS, white pants, a blue wool sweater with a black scarf around her, and her hair tie into neat bun.

"It dragged in you," Alison said.

"Alice, who's this?" Dakota whispers.

"Mackenzie," she answers.

"Who is he?" Mackenzie demands.

"He's my friend," Alison fiercely said.

Mackenzie mockingly laughs. "Goth Queen, you can barely make friends with kids our age, so you make friends with people older than you; that's a new low."

"A new low for you is showing off yourself. Have you ever heard of self-respect?"

"I do have self-respect for myself. Is he your babysitter?" Mackenzie asks as she smirks.

"Listen kid, I'm just a friend of Alison. Why do you talk to her like that?" Dakota asks Mackenzie.

"Do you have any boyfriends? Are you alone? Poor baby," she coos.

Alison walks up to Mackenzie, and looks at her dead in the eye. "I don't have a boyfriend. I don't want a boyfriend. I think you probably have a ton of them waiting for you. Mackenzie, how do you think Nick would feel if he ever finds out you have a ton of followers following you? I'm actually surprise that he puts up with you."

Mackenzie bitterly smiles as she said, "It's not like you can get a boyfriend," she taunts.

"'It's not like you can get a boyfriend,'" Alison imitates. "Are we in a who-can-get-more-boyfriends competition? What have I ever done to you so that you hate me so much? I've never talked to up until you started saying those nasty comments to me," she demands.

"No, we are not in a competition. Leave Nick out of this if you know what's good for you," she said then pushes Alison's shoulder away.

"I'm not sure you want a nosebleed," she threatens.

"I dare you," Mackenzie challenges.

Dakota gently touches Alison's shoulder. "You're not even worth the hassle," Alison snarls.

Mackenzie evilly laughs and said, "Tootles."

"Witch."

"Emo."

"Troll."

"Wanna be."

Alison looks at Mackenzie with disgust. "Insecure," she finally said. Alison loops her arm around Dakota and said to him, "Let's go." He looks back, and sticks out his tongue.

* * *

Nick's cheeks very faintly turn pink. "Define like," he said.

Jason can't help but smirk. "How about romantically?"

"I have a girlfriend," he reminds.

"You like her," Jason said.

"Who said I do?" Nick said.

"You didn't say no."

"She's my friend."

"Do you see her as more than a friend?"

"I don't know."

"How long have you liked her?"

"I sort of liked her from a distance, and liked her a tad bit more when we started talking," Nick grumbles.

Jason chuckles as he remembers that he liked Reyna from a distance and like her more when they started talking:

_Jason was sword fighting against Bobby at the Fields of Mars who thought was better at sword fighting than Jason. Dakota sat on the dirt as he was the speaker._

"_Bobby, son of stupid, is about to disarm Jason Grace's sword by knocking it out," Dakota said._

"_Son of what?" Bobby asked as he glared at Dakota. Jason took advantage of the opportunity and took away Bobby's sword by grabbing the handle and pointed it at Bobby's throat. "Cheater!" Bobby exclaimed._

"_Well taking away my Mac and Cheese isn't fair now is it?" Jason asked him. Earlier during lunch, Bobby was way too lazy to order Mac and Cheese so he punched Dakota in the gut to get Jason's attention and Jason's grabbed the food for himself._

"_I didn't do that," Bobby denied._

"_You did," Jason said._

"_Who said I did that?" Bobby demanded. _

"_Bobby, that's Bobby like of you to do that, and we saw the cheese sauce on that fat horse mouth of yours," Dakota said as he bit a bagel that he smuggled out of the mess hall._

_Bobby had a shocked expression and looked at his two friends with surprise. "I did not," he retorted._

_"Bobby, give it up, we saw you," Jason confessed._

"_Jason, you need to see an eye doctor," his hand flew up in the air, "because I didn't do anything."_

"_Dakota saw," Jason said._

"_Dakota claimed he saw Bigfoot once," Bobby said as had his hands on his hips. "Never mind you Jason, its Kota that needs to see an eye doctor." _

"_Hey, I saw him with my two eyes," Dakota said as he pointed at his two blue eyes._

"_Yeah, and I saw the tooth fairy," Bobby rolled his eyes._

"_You probably saw an old granny dressed up as the tooth fairy at Halloween," Dakota said. Jason smiled from how odd the conversation was._

"_I was being sarcastic," Bobby plainly said._

"_I know, I just wanted to tell you that it was a granny who you were hollering out and calling cutie pie," Dakota plainly replied too. Jason laughed while Bobby blushed._

"_I did not," Bobby shyly said._

"_Umm, you did," Dakota said. Bobby tackled Dakota to the floor and started to pull his hair until Jason intervened, but got pulled in himself by Bobby. Jason ended up on the bottom with Bobby on top._

"_Bobby, get off," Jason growled._

"_Where's Kota?" Bobby said as if he was a hungry animal._

"_Gwen is coming," Dakota squealed relieved. Jason turned his head sideways and saw Gwen coming with the girl he didn't recognize. The girl wore a blue pants, a Camp Jupiter purple shirt, long raven black braided hair, tan skin, and piercing dark eyes. She was okay looking, but there was something about her that intrigued Jason._

"_Is there something I should know about?" Gwen asked Jason._

_Jason looked at the girl next to him and saw that she looked prettier up close. "Bobby," Jason said then flipped Bobby so he can be off him._

"_Ouch," Bobby moaned._

"_Yes, it's at an early stage," Dakota whispered that resulted with Bobby smacking his arm._

_Bobby licked his hand and slicked back his hair as he got up and approached the girl. "What's your name?" He asked her. The girl glared at him. Bobby reached over to touch her arm but she grabbed his wrist and back flipped him to the dirt floor._

"_I probably should've said something about not touching her," Gwen said as she knelt and touched Bobby's forehead. His tongue was out from his mouth and it looked like he wasn't breathing. "Is he dead?" Gwen asked. The girl shook her head and knelt with Gwen and whispered in her ear. "I'll have to do CPR," Gwen said as she cringed._

"_Over my dead body! I'd rather do it than you," Dakota announced as he knelt where Bobby lay dead on the floor._

"_I don't recommend it," Jason said._

"_Well I'm not gonna let Gwen do it," Dakota said._

"_Why not?" Gwen asked._

"_You wanna do it? Please go ahead and do it," Dakota said as he pointed at Bobby._

"_No," she scrunched her nose. Jason had a hunch feeling that Bobby was faking it, and thought that Dakota wouldn't do it; Dakota wouldn't do it._

"_Where's the fish when I need it," Dakota muttered. He pinched Bobby's nose and said, "Here I go." Bobby's eyes shot wide opened and sat up. "Thank you," Dakota bowed and slapped his forehead. "What is wrong with you?" He demanded._

"_I wanted some action," Bobby said in his defense. Gwen slapped his arm._

"_I was worried about you," she angrily said. Jason looked at the girl next to Gwen and saw amusement in her eyes._

_A couple of days after the incident, Jason strolled to the steps of his father's temple but saw the girl he saw days ago walking towards Bellona's temple. Jason remembered that she didn't say a word the first time he met her. She entered Bellona's temple and Jason made the decision to follow her. The floor was pure reddish soil. The balusters were made of white lime stones with carved torches. The walls were covered with a blood-red cloth that slightly moved against the wind. The statue of Bellona was made of gold with a red cloak, and a lit golden torch._

_Jason saw her knelt before the Bellona's statue and stayed in that position. He stood at the doorway of the temple. He played with the dirt by kicking it until he went face flat to the floor. Her head shot up and turned to glare at Jason. Jason quickly got up and brushed off the dirt._

"_Sorry," he said._

_She shook her head disapprovingly, and walked out of the temple with Jason following. "I said I was sorry," Jason said. She stopped and looked at him._

"_Leave me alone or I will slice your head off and don't think I won't because I will," she threatened and walked away. Her voice had authority but yet it sounded musical to Jason, and he like it._

"Why haven't you told her?" Jason asked. He and Nick are walking back to the hill with two baskets of nachos in both of their hands.

Nick shrugs. "I have Mackenzie," he said.

"Does Alison have a boyfriend?" Jason asks.

"No," he said.

Jason grins. "So you've done your research?" He teases.

"I've hung out with her," Nick said as he chuckles. The two of them are on the hill, and sit on the green grass as they wait for the others.

"She rarely has a boyfriend or never has had a boyfriend," Jason assumes.

"Maybe."

"So you got a long list of girlfriends?"

* * *

"You also annoy me," Reyna said.

"Does the guy annoy you more than me?" Andrew asked.

"Can I say both?"

Andrew shakes his head as he chuckles. "Wow," he said.

Reyna grabs her bag and reaches for her phone. She looks at the time and decides to call Alison. "I'll be back," she announces and get up from the table. She walks outside the coffee shop and calls Alison.

* * *

"Hello?" Alison answers the phone.

"What are you doing?" Reyna asks.

"I'm at the police office," she said.

"You got arrested," Reyna angrily said.

"I'm just kidding," Alison said. "Shut up or I'll dump that water on your head, Count Weenie Boy." "Oh gosh, Mom, that wasn't for you."

"Count Weenie Boy?" Reyna said confuse.

"Well my friend acts like a weenie," Alison said.

"Hey!" A voice defensively said in the background.

"Where are you exactly?" Reyna asks.

"I'm at the park," she said.

"I'll pick you up in half an hour or so," Reyna said.

"I'm a big girl, I can go home by myself," Alison said outrage.

"Either you let me pick you up or when I pick you up I'll show baby pictures of you that I have in the car to your friends," Reyna said.

"Go ahead," Alison said nonchalantly.

"I have a baby picture of you with makeup horribly applied that you did on yourself," Reyna seriously said.

There's silence on the line until Alison said, "Okay," with defeat.

"I'll be there in like half an hour," Reyna said smiling.

"Okay," Alison said with a sigh.

"Bye," Reyna said.

"Bye," she said. Reyna hangs up and returns to the coffee shop.

* * *

"Get away," Alison said as she pushes away Dakota's head. Dakota put his head against Alison's head to hear her conversation with her mom; the voice sounds vaguely familiar to him.

"I wanna see a baby pic of you," Dakota said.

"Let me think about it," she taps her fingers against her chin, "no."

"Were you a cherubic baby?" He coos.

"Shut up," Alison said while smiling. They're climbing up the hill where they see Nick and Jason already there.

"You did it on purpose," Jason tells Dakota.

"What did I do?" He asks in an I-did-it voice.

"What don't you do?" Jason asks.

"I don't fart on your face," Dakota said defensively. Alison and Nick bite their tongues to avoid laughing.

"You're the only one that goes on a Kool-Aid fiesta," Jason said.

"Partying is in my blood," Dakota and pats his chest in a what-now expression. Jason knows Kota has a point.

"You took Alison to the liquor store," Jason said.

"What's wrong with that?" Alison asks. She sits next to Nick and grabs the basket of nachos that he hands her.

"He knew that the nacho stand had drunk," Jason said.

"Well I want some one-on-one time," Dakota said.

"Why?" Jason asks.

"She's funny," Dakota said. "I also wanted some hot scoop, right Ali?"

"You guys have nicknames for one another?" Jason asks.

"You can be Blond Superman," Dakota said. Alison laughs.

"Shut up," Jason said as he hands a basket of nachos to Dakota. His comment reminds Jason of Percy when Percy called him a blond superman once.

"Plus, Alison and I got into a serious discussion," Dakota dramatically.

"Like?" Jason asks as he gets the bottle of coke from the small plastic bag.

"About love," Alison said then stuffs her mouth with nachos.

"Let's hear about this," Jason said and looks at Nick.

"I heard about Kota's love life," Alison said.

"So you know about Gwen?" Jason asks.

"Yup," Alison said.

"Then we changed the subject on you," Dakota said. He takes out the two Snapple from the plastic bag and gently throws them Alison, and Nick.

Alison catches the bottle and feels that she's choking on nachos. _Curse you delicious nachos._ "Thanks, Kota," she sarcastically said.

"What section of the love life was talked about?" Nick asks.

"Nothing," Alison said. "Can we just move to the next topic?" She feels awkward that she's having this type of conversation with _3_ guys. _There's something wrong with them._

"Your girlfriend is Mackenzie right?" Dakota asks Nick.

"Yeah," he said.

Dakota frowns and shakes his head. "I don't like her," he said.

"You haven't even met her," Nick said. Alison gives Dakota a please-don't-tell look, but he ignores her and continues.

"Me and Alison saw her and she wasn't very nice," Dakota said.

"Is this true?" Nick demands from Alison. She cringes and wishes she isn't haven't this conversation with Nick.

"The weather looks nice," she comments as she looks at the almost night sky.

"What did she say?" Nick asks.

"A few words were exchanged," she said as she pushes away her nachos and hugs her legs.

"Like what?" Jason asks.

"You know how she is," she tells Nick. "She said who is he, which is Dakota, and I said he's my friend. Then, we got into a conversation about boyfriends and she said to stay away from you."

"Is the tension that bad?" Jason asks.

"Yes, she bothers me even though I haven't done anything to her," Alison said. Jason looks at Nick with a knowing look on his face. Alison is about to open her mouth to say something but her phone rings.

"Hello?"

"Sorry that it took a bit more than half an hour to come but I'm coming," Alison's mom said.

"Are you here?"

"Almost, but I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Okay."

"I'll see you soon."

"Bye."

"Bye." She hangs up her phone.

"Is that your mom?" Jason asks.

"Yeah," she said.

"I wanna see those baby pics!" Dakota exclaims.

"No!" Alison said.

"Why? Am I going to see a chubby baby?" Dakota coos.

"I wanna see that," Jason said amuse.

"Well those pictures are on lockdown," she said. Nick looks at Alison and smiles. "What?" She asks.

"I'm just imagining you with chubby cheeks and huge big blue eyes," Nick said smiling. She playfully pushes Nick and Nick lies down on the grass.

Alison laughs. She becomes quiet and realizes that she still has Nick's jacket. "I got your jacket," she said and offers it to him.

"Are you cold?" He asks her.

"Okay Nick, you know how Alison isn't the gushy mushy type," Dakota in a motherly that results the others to laugh.

"We know," Jason said.

"Good," she said. "I don't like gushy mushy romance."

"No passionate kiss in the rain?" Jason asks.

Alison sticks out her tongue from disgust. "No."

"Boyfriends?" Jason asks.

"Again with the love department? No. No boyfriend," Alison said.

"Kota, what are you doing?" Jason asks.

"Nothing," Dakota said. He's pouring red powder into his water bottle.

"Is that Kool-Aid?" Nicks asks.

"Yeah, it is," Alison said.

Jason gives a sigh of frustration. "Give me the bottle," he orders Dakota.

Dakota hugs his bottle in a greedy way and flares his nostrils. "No," he defiantly said.

"Give me the bottle," Jason said then tackles Dakota. Alison and Nick intervene by trying to pull them away.

* * *

Reyna is driving in the car with Andrew beside her. On the way to the park, there's an awful traffic because of a car trash so she and Andrew are stuck together.

"We're stuck together again," Andrew huskily said.

"Oh," Reyna said. She has the temptation to bang her head against the steering wheel because of the way Andrew said his words. "Don't do that."

"We're gonna pick out Alison right?" Andrew asks.

The word, _we're,_ caught Reyna a bit off guard but she quickly dismisses it. "Yup," she said.

"Okay," Andrew said. Reyna finally makes it to the park and parks her car in a parking space. She leans back into her seat and sighs. "My best guess is that you call her so that she can get her sharp tongue of hers over here."

"True," she agrees and takes out her phone and dials. The phone rings and rings until it gets to the voicemail box. "She isn't answering."

"Do you want me to go and look for her?" He offers.

Reyna shakes her head and said, "No, I'll go get her." She looks out her window and sees that it's nighttime. The park looks empty and the park lights are dimly lit.

"Okay," he said and nods in approval.

Reyna steps out of the car and looks at Andrew. "You better not steal my car," she warns.

He devilishly smiles. "Never," he said.

"I'm taking the keys," she said and takes off the driver's key from the engine.

"Come on," he complains.

"I'll be back," she said and shuts the door.

* * *

After Alison and Nick accomplish pulling Jason and Dakota apart, Alison checks her phone and sees one missed call from her mom.

"What's so wrong with me drinking Kool-Aid?" Dakota demands.

"Do you want diabetes?" Jason asks.

"Do you want me to rink wine?" Dakota slightly slurs.

"How many packets are in the bottle?" Jason eyes Dakota.

"One," he whispers. There's actually 11 packets of Kool-Aid inside the water bottle.

"I'm not sure if it would taste good with multiple packs in one bottle," Nick said.

"You should try it," Dakota recommends and offers his bottle of Kool-Aid.

"Nick, don't take the Kool-Aid. Kota, you poured more than one packet didn't you?" Jason asks.

"Why do you have a Kool-Aid addiction?" Alison asks.

"Oh, I see how it is. I'm being attacked by all y'all," Dakota said as he points the bottle to Nick, Jason, and Alison.

"You're not," Alison said.

"The horror," Dakota said as he pretends to faint.

"We're not attacking you, Dakota," Nick said.

Dakota sniffs. "Okay. Good." Jason shakes his head. "Shut up, lover boy."

"What did I do?" Jason asks with surprise.

"You had the shake," Dakota said.

"That sounds terrifying," Alison sarcastically said.

"What shake?"

"The why-is-he-my-best-friend shake," Dakota said.

"No, it was the I'm-going-to-smack-you-later shake," Jason confesses.

"Oh," Dakota said.

"Alison!" A female voice yells.

"Who's that?" Jason asks.

"My mom," Alison said.

"Oh," Jason said.

"Alison!" The voice yells again. The voice sort of sounds familiar to Jason, but doesn't know why.

"Nick, wanna ride home?" Alison asks.

"I can just─"

"No, you're coming with me," Alison said and grabs Nick's hands and pulls him up. "Bye Jace. Bye Kota."

"Picture?" Dakota hopefully asks.

"No," she replies.

"It was nice meeting you two," Nick politely said.

"Come on," Alison urges and pulls Nick down the hill.

* * *

Jason watches Alison and Nick go down the hill to a small figure that he can't see make out. The figure also looks familiar. Jason is about to go down the hill to meet Alison's mom, but Dakota decides to roll down the hill on the other side.

"Wee!" Dakota shouts. Jason laughs and follows Dakota the same way─ he rolls.

* * *

Alison and Nick go down the hill to Alison's mom, and Alison releases her hold on Nick's hand.

"Sorry I didn't answer the phone," Alison apologizes. "This is my friend, Nick."

"Hello," Nick said and holds out his hand.

Reyna takes his hand and firmly shakes it. "It's nice to meet you," she said.

"Mom, can you give Nick a ride home? It's just that it's late and I knew if I were to walk home you would say that it's late to walk home," Alison said.

"Well I was gonna show those picture," Reyna said as slightly smirks.

"Mom," Alison impatiently said.

Reyna smiles and said, "Sure, come on."

* * *

Reyna is relief when she saw Alison and her friend, Nick, come down the hill. She could've sworn that she saw a male with blond and another with black hair.

"Were you with other people?" Reyna asks as she walks to the car with Alison and Nick.

"Yeah, two other friends," Alison said.

"Is it a blond and a black-haired people?" Reyna asks.

"Yes," she said. _Okay, I am not crazy._ Reyna gets in the car, and Alison and Nick go into the back.

"Hi, Uncle Andy," Nick said.

"Uncle?" Reyna and Alison said in unison.

"Andrew is my uncle," Nick said as if it's obvious.

"Hey sport," Andrew greets.

"How come you didn't say anything?" Reyna asks him.

"I wasn't going to go into full detail," Andrew said.

"So all this time I've insulted Nick's uncle," Alison said with realization.

"Yes," Andrew said.

"No wonder. At school, plenty of girls drool over Nick, and plenty of ladies drool over Andrew. Nick's smart and I'm not so sure if I can say so about Andrew," Alison said. Andrew frowns as Reyna smiles and Nick laughs.

"This has been an interesting evening," Reyna comments.

"Indeed," Alison said as she sighs.

"Who will I drop off first?" Reyna asks.

"Me," Andrew said. Reyna looks at him strangely. "Just drop me off and I'll explain," he said.

"Hey, hey, I call the shots," Alison said with authority. Reyna lips slightly curl up. "Mom, drive Andrew home so he can explain," she orders. Reyna frowns and looks at Alison from the side mirror. "Please," she politely said.

"Buckle your seatbelts," Reyna orders. She pulls the car into reverse and she's off.

* * *

**splendid123456789: Almost close.**

**Kushina-Reyna: Okay. Sure! I'll check out your story. **

**Jeynafanxo: Okay, okay, I updated. Stalker! *fake shocked face***

**SailorMoonAddict: I will continue since many people love this story!**

**Heart Breaking 101: I'll update again soon.**

**Guest: I will update and I'm glad you love the story.**

**rjme 1006: Alost there to that chapter many are anticipating.**

**I am Bianca Daughter of Pluto: I hoped you liked the Gwen and Dakota part. I'm actually considering writing a fic about them. **

**Kittyhawk09: You're welcome.**

**IamAnnabethdaughterofAthena: Thank you!**

**beattle: I'm glad you do.**

**guest: Option A is a good idea. Well option B sort of happened but Reyna doesn't know that the blond dude is Jason and the dark haired one is Dakota.**

**Do you think he has godly blood? If you think he does have godly blood which parent do you think he'd have? I can't say if he does or not because I would be giving it away.**

**Guest: Jason might meet Andrew.**

**Guest: We're almost there to that part of Jason and Reyna meeting. Thank you, even though I think I sucked like Apollo.**

**Guest like this: Thank you, I still think I'm like Apollo on the subject on haikus. Almost there, just a few chappies more and the wait will be over. Hold on!**

**JAYNA4EVA: Thank you! I will update soon. Well, Alison doesn't a boyfriend and I'm not sure how she would react if Nick told her that he likes her. Reyna and Jason will meet but in a few chapters more. Yes, there will be more Jeyna, but in flashbacks. Luke, Bianca, and Beckendorf will probably tell Reyna their secret, but later on. No, they do not know about Reyna being a Roman demigod; they don't even know, except Luke, that Roman demigods exist. The time will come when Reyna tells Alison about her past. It's painful for Jason to say Reyna's name so it's unlikely. I don't mind the questions since I enjoy answering them!**

**Sea Swimmer XD: Thank you for loving the story! I'm glad you enjoyed the flashbacks. Jason might meet Andrew. Jason and Reyna will meet in a few chapters more. I know it should have to do something with Alison. I'll consider it to make Nick dump Mackenzie for Alison, but it's not a guarantee. Once again, I enjoy Andrew's character so I'm not sure if I can do that to him.**

**I updated!**

**JaynaPercyLuver4Ever: No, they do not know Reyna is a demigod, but they might tell her, eventually. Percy might/will make a special appearance. I might consider Jason and Reyna protecting Alison during a monster attack, but fighting scene isn't my best strength in writing. Jason and Andrew might meet. Agreed.**

**Guest: Haha, Alison doesn't realize it yet.**

**Pluto's fricking pauldrons: I'm waiting until you say that love the story.**


	11. Chapter 11

**I kind of had writer's block so that's why I haven't updated until now.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

_"Falling in love and having a relationship are two different things."_

_-Keanu Reeves_

* * *

Reyna is driving to Andrew's house when he and Alison are arguing:

"How is that genetically possible that you and Nick share the same DNA?" Alison asks.

"Number one: Nick and I do not share the same DNA. Number two—"

"Nick and I share the same bloodline, unfortunately," Alison says as she imitates Andrew. Andrew turns from his seat and looks at Alison.

"Why is that hard to believe?" Andrew asks.

"I can understand her point of view," Nick says.

"My own blood!" He dramatically says. Nick can't help but laugh.

"Hush," Alison orders.

"Anyways, Nick has good genes if you haven't noticed," Andrew says rather cocky as he runs his fingers through his hair.

"He inherit the good ones and not the bad ones," she plainly says.

"Have you seem him—"

"What a lovely night?" Nick interrupts.

"Okay," Reyna says. She doesn't want to hear them prattling anymore.

"How come you're here?" Nick asks Andrew.

"Reyna gave me a ride," Andrew replies.

"That piece of garbage of a Porsche broke down on him," Alison speaks up.

"No wonder I haven't seen it," Nick says.

"The Porsche is not a piece of junk. Porsche is a very expensive—" Andrew said before Reyna interrupts.

"Piece of junk," Reyna finishes.

Andrew clicks his tongue and properly sits down on his seat as he looks at Reyna. "That's offensive."

Reyna looks at Andrew from the corner of her eye as she says, "That's honesty."

"It's brutal," he says.

"Honesty is brutal," Alison wisely says.

"You make the ideal child of Athena," Nick whispers to Alison.

"Shut up," she says.

"That should be your catchphrase," he sarcastically replies.

Reyna wonder if they'll ever be quiet. She turns left and is about to arrive at Andrew's place.

* * *

"Can I see your phone?" Nick politely asks.

"Why?" She skeptically asks.

"It's not like I'm going to go through your contact list," he says.

"Fine," she says, with defeat. She give Nick her black touch screen phone and then, looks out the window. She sees the trees quickly passing by her with the moon brightly lit up the sky.

"Here," Nick says and hands her phone. Alison takes it back and confuse that Nick might have done something to it.

"I didn't do anything to it," Nick says as if he just read her mind.

"Okay?" She confusingly says.

"How's Mackenzie?" Andrew asks.

"Who?" Reyna demands. Judging by her mother's face, Alison can tell that her is about to stop the car and chew Nick's and Andrew's head off.

"Mackenzie," Andrew slowly says.

"So my daughter of hanging out with the bullies' boyfriend? Alison, do you want more trouble that it already is?" She asks Alison.

"He tells her to stop and she actually calms down," Alison defends.

"It's true. I wish nothing more than your daughter to be hurt by someone who I'm with," Nick pleads.

"Nicholas, I'll accept that you two are hanging out, but if I get another call that your girlfriend did something to _my_ Alison you will not hear the end of me. Am I making myself clear?" Reyna strictly says.

"Mom—" Alison says before Nick interrupts.

Nick places his hand on top of Alison's hand as he said, "Yes."

Andrew looks at Reyna and tell her "My boy keeps to his word."

Alison feels Nick's warm hand over hers but she quickly takes it back. "Alright," she says.

Reyna drives to the front of Andrew house; the house is color sea green, two stories high, and green grass on the front lawn.

"Gracias," Andrew says in a horrible Spanish accent.

"Fail," Alison comments.

"De nada," Reyna says in a perfect Spanish accent.

"Burn," Nick says. Andrew frowns:

"You put me to shame," he says.

Alison hears bells mentally ring inside her head. "Hold up," she says as she does the timeout signal.

"Yeah?" Andrew asks.

"Who was that person you were getting coffee with?" She curiously asks.

Nick quickly catches Alison drift and adds, "Who is it?"

"Mom, where did you go?" Alison interrogate.

Andrew snorts and looks at Reyna as he smirks, then looks at Alison and Nick._ "We_ should be asking that."

"We went to the mall, went to an ice cream shop and went to the park," Nick quickly answers as he looks at his uncle.

"What do you think?" Reyna asks her daughter.

"I think that 'hot girl' I teased Andrew a while ago is you," she says a she points at her mother. Alison is a smart girl that connects the dots really quickly.

"I really hope you're applying those skills for academics," Reyna says.

"Answer the question," she says like a detective.

"Same applies for you," Nick tells Andrew.

"You know what, get out of he car before I tell embarrassing stories about you, Nick," Andrew warns.

"Stay," she tells Nick. "Tell me about those stories," he tells Andrew.

"I'll show the pictures," Reyna warns.

"Look at the bright side, Jace and Kota won't see it," Nick says.

"Who?" Reyna demands. Alison sees her mom with a slight bit of panic in her eyes.

"My friends," she clarifies.

"Come on, Nick. Thanks for the insult, Reyna," Andrew teases.

"Gotcha!" Alison yells as her arms fly up to the roof. Nick laughs at her.

"The mystery has been solved!" Nick exclaims.

"I could've gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling kids," Andrew scowl.

"That sounds familiar," Nick curiously recalls.

"Okay, Shaggy," Alison says.

"That's where it's from," Nick says, smiling.

"Okay!" Reyna says.

"Alright," Alison says. She realizes that she still has Nick's jacket and holds it out for him.

"Thank," Nick says as he takes the jacket.

"I had a great time with you," Andrew says. _Kill me now!_

"I've enjoyed insulting you," Reyna says as a small smile escape her thin lips.

* * *

"Alright," Andrew says. "Drive safely."

"Yes, I'll drive in my trustworthy car," Reyna says as she pats her black steering wheel.

"Really? Do you really have to put that in my face?" Andrew asks.

"Yes, yes she does," Alison answers.

"She just answered," Reyna says.

"Bye, Alice," Nick says.

"Bye," Alison says as she waves good-bye. Reyna has a good feeling that Nick likes her daughter; she isn't sure if Alison likes him.

"Bye," Reyna tells Andrew.

"Bye." He shuts the car door. Reyna drives back home.

"So was that a date between you and Andrew?" Alison asks.

"No."

"Are you gonna end up falling in love with him?"

"No."

"So you're dating him? Do you find him being seductive attractive?"

"No, I'm not dating him nor do I find him flirting being attractive."

"So you have a relationship with him?"

"How about you and Nick?"

"He's my friend."

"I think he likes you."

"You're just like Jean." She rolls her eyes.

A chuckle escapes Reyna's lips. "Jean has a point."

"I don't like him."

"So you love him?" Reyna curiously asks.

"No, we have a relationship."

Reyna looks at her side mirror and says, "What kind of relationship?"

"He's my friends."

"I'm just messing with you," Reyna confess.

"Good. I was getting annoyed."

Reyna parks her car and takes the key out. Alison gets out of the car and goes inside.

Reyna felt that her heart went to a panic attack when Nick mentioned "Jason and Kota." The first two people that she remembers being called by that name were Jason and Dakota. For a second she briefly thought that Nick meant Jason and Dakota. That couldn't be possible. It isn't possible.

She walks inside her home and goes to the kitchen. Reyna opens the kitchen pantry and looks what's inside.

"What will I do?" She asks herself out loud. She sees flour, powder sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon.

"Cinnamon buns," she answers herself. Reyna takes out the ingredients and gets to work.

* * *

Alison sits on her bed and pulls off her boots. She throws them on the floor and she lays down onto her bed. She wiggles her fingers.

"Don't wear boots again, only if necessary," she tells herself.

Her phone rings and Alison thinks it's Jean. She grabs her phone and sees that it's a text from Nick.

"How the Pluto do I have his number?" She asks herself.

Nick: Hey. (I put my number into your phone when you gave me your phone.)

Alison: Really? *note the sarcasm*

Nick: Yeah.

Alison: You forgot to mention why your gf doesn't like me.

Nick: Yeah, I forgot.

Alison: .

Nick: Sorry about that.

Alison: ...

Nick: What did I do?

Alison: I'm waiting for you to explain!

Nick: Now?

Alison: I'll attack you when I see you. ^.^

Nick: Is that a good thing? :)

Alison: No.

Nick: :(

Alison: Explain.

Alison really wants to know why Mackenzie doesn't like her.

"Alison!" She hears her mom yell from downstairs.

Alison smells something good so she drops her phone on her bed and goes downstairs.

* * *

Reyna takes out the tray of hot cinnamon buns from the oven with a towel. She goes to the fridge and takes out a gallon of milk.

"Alison!" She yells. I feel like getting a fan and wait for her to smell it.

"Okay," Alison says. Reyna gets out of the kitchen and sees Alison slide down the stairs from the stair's rail.

"You could've gotten hurt," she scolds.

"I didn't," Alison cooly says

Reyna sees Alison walk to the kitchen, grabs a plate and attempts to grab a cinnamon bun, but miserably fails because the cinnamon buns are hot. "Ouch!" Alison yells. She sucks her index finger and thumb.

"You should've waited," Reyna chimes.

Alison growls and grabs a fork. With the fork, Alison places it through a cinnamon bun. "See!" She exclaims. She grabs the white frosting and pours some of it on the cinnamon bun. She places a finger in the bowl full of frosting and licks it.

"Gross," Reyna said as she crinkle her nose from disgust. She washes her hands and grabs two red mugs from the sink. "Hot chocolate?" She suggests.

Alison raises an eyebrow and smirks. "Did Andrew put you into a good mood?"

"Can I say the same thing about you and Nicholas?"

Alison pouts as she crosses her arms. She reminds Reyna when she was younger:

_"Alice, we have to go," Reyna patiently said. She had to take Alison to the daycare center so she can make it to class._

_Alison played with her dolls on the floor._

_"I don't want to," she said as she brushed her baby doll's blonde hair._

_"Get your stuff," Reyna strictly said._

_"Okay," Alison agreed. She got up from the floor and fixed her white dress with a big pink bow tied around her waist._

_"Grab me a ribbon so that I can tie your blonde hair," Reyna said and sat on the couch. _

_"I don't like dress," she complained._

_"Go," Reyna ordered._

_Alison grunted and went to do what her mother told her. She came back and gave her mom two silk ribbon. _

_Reyna lifted Alison from the floor and placed her onto her lap. She tied Alison's blonde hair into two pigtail. "Grab your backpack." Alison got off Reyna's lap and went upstairs and grabbed her red backpack._

_"Can I wear pants?" Alison pleaded._

_"You look pretty," Reyna tried to reason with her._

_"Me no like it." Alison pouted and crossed her arms._

_"Mommy likes it."_

_"I don't it."_

_Reyna got up from the couch and went to the door. "Come on," she told her. Reyna walked to the car and unlocked it. She turned and saw Alison on the front lawn as she continued to pout._

_"No," she said._

_"You're choice," she sighed. Reyna got into the car and started the car and waited for Alison to start crying and wants to get into the car. She looked out the window and saw Alison doing the same thing as before. "Stubborn," she said under her breath as she got out. "Get in the car, now," she ordered her. Reyna was getting tired of Alison's tantrum._

_Alison growled but got into the car._

"What?" Alison asks.

Reyna shakes her head. She realizes that she's smiling as she says, "I just remembered you did that when you were younger."

Alison snort as she rolls her blue eyes. "You mean when Luke used to call me Goldilocks because of my then blonde hair."

Reyna slightly tenses up when she remembers Alison's blonde hair because it use to look exactly like Jason's blond hair. "Yeah," she says as she forces herself not to make her voice crack. She makes hot chocolate and gives Alison a mug of hot chocolate.

"I wonder why I had blonde hair," she says, wistfully. Reyna's heart aches from hearing the way on how she had blonde hair.

She take a gulp of hot chocolate and carefully selects her words as she says, "Your father had blond hair." Her dark eyes turn watery when she remembers Jason's blond hair:

_Reyna woke up from a peaceful sleep in Jason's arms. Jason had one arm around Reyna's belly and his other hand as a pillow. She slowly turned around and studied Jason's face. To Reyna, Jason looked like an innocent little boy who wouldn't hurt a fly as he slept. His usually well-kept hair was messy and he had a small grin on his face as he slept. She was tempted to entwine her fingers with his blond hair but she didn't want to wake him up._

_Jason groaned and tugged Reyna closer to him as he tightened his grip around her waist. Their noses slightly touched. She patiently waited until Jason's muscles relaxed and she got out of bed and grabbed a pillow to replace her spot. She fixed her white tank top and black short as she walked to the bathroom._

_Reyna was halfway to the bathroom when she heard Jason sound frightened as he shouted "Reyna!" She quickly turned around and saw Jason sitting up from the bed with a frighten, but yet relieved, expression plastered on his face._

_"What?" She asked, worried._

_"I was just scared that you were gone."_

_Reyna couldn't help but smirk. "Why?"_

_Jason blushed and placed his right hand over his showed. Reyna knew he was embarrassed so she walked to Jason and sat on his lip and played with blond hair. Reyna was so entertained with fingers playing with Jason's hair that she didn't notice him staring at her until she looked at him. "What?" She asked him. Jason replied by kissing her._

_Reyna laid on the bed and continued to kiss Jason as she still played with his hair. Jason pulled away and lightly traced her jaw line and stroke her neck. "What is wrong with you?" She asked him. He remained silent, but kissed her again. _

_He pulled away from her again and leaned against her ear. "You never shut up do you?" He croaked._

_Reyna's skin tingled as she whispered, "I shouldn't be talking." He chuckled. "Move," she told him. Jason obeyed and got off of her and Reyna laid herself on top of him. She once more began playing with his hair._

_"What is wrong with you?" He asked her._

_"I like your hair," she confessed._

_"Really?" He playfully asked._

_"Yes," she said and rolled her eyes._

Reyna remembers that Jason let her play with his hair all day, when he made her agree that he had permission to kiss her all he want and however long he wanted. The only time Jason and Reyna got out of bed was to either eat or use the bathroom.

"Oh," Alison whispers.

She feels a tear that falls down her cheek tha she quickly wipes away. "Yeah."

"You fell in love with him?" Alison asks.

"It was just childish teenage love," Reyna answers.

"But it still hurts you and still to this very day."

"I just had a relationship with him."

"But you fell in love with him," Alison points out.

Reyna looks at Alison and sees a worry expression on her face. "I prefer not to comment on that."

"Do I look like him?"

"No, you don't look like him." _You just so happen to have his eyes, but you mostly look like his sister, Thalia. _

_"_Do I remind you—"

Reyna holds up her hand and says "I don't want to talk about. I don't even know why I told you."

"Alright," Alison sighs and sits at the table. She takes a huge bite of the cinnamon bun and hums from how good it tastes. "This is good," she says between munching.

"Thanks," Reyna says as she sits on the table.

"I just noticed that you haven't made cinnamon buns in a longtime."

"Nor hot chocolate," she realizes.

"True."

* * *

Alison can see her mother's shatter heart from her sad eyes. She mentally curses herself from saying why she had blonde hair when she was younger. She knows that she inherited her blue eyes from her father, but that was all she knew that she inherited. _My dad had blond hair? _

She can tell that her mom still loves her father, even though her mom may or may not be denying it.

"Why not?" She asks.

"I really haven't had times to make them," Reyna says.

"Or you haven't been put into a happy mood like Andrew put you in," she teases.

Reyna rolls her eyes. "Again?"

"Again," she confirms as she nods her head.

"Should I go back between you and Nicholas?"

"His name is Nick."

"Should I go back between you and _Nick?"_

"Why do I want to get in between with my friend and whose girlfriend I don't like?"

Reyna gives Alison a knowing smile. "Just…"

_Just what? The weather?_ "Whatever," she says as she props her knees on the table.

"Again?"

"What time is it?"

Reyna looks at her wristwatch and sees that it's 9. "It's 9." In the living room, the phone rings and Reyna gets up from the table and answers it. "I'll be back."

When Reyna leaves, Alison considers hiding a stash of cinnamon buns under her bed or to eat as many as she possibly can. She takes a bite of her cinnamon bun and a long gulp of hot chocolate. Alison sees that the tray that has ten cinnamon buns are still out. She gets up from her seat and peaks to the living room and sees her mom on the phone. _Operation Cinnamon Bun is officially on._

* * *

Reyna picks up the phone and finds out that it's Alison's friend, Jean, on the line.

"Can Alison come ever tomorrow?" Jean sweetly asks. Reyna has known Jean for a short wild but she seems like a bright girl with a humorous personality.

"Sure. I'll get her," Reyna says and puts the phone down. "Alison."

* * *

Alison is currently stuffing her mouth with cinnamon buns. She hears her mom call her and she feels she's going to have a panic attack. _Dang it!_

Alison quickly goes to wash her hands but completely forgets to clean her mouth that has white frosting all over.

"Alison, your friend, Jean, is on the phone," Reyna nonchalantly says until she gets a good look at Alison.

"What's up?" Alison innocently asks.

* * *

Reyna sees that Alison has a white mustache made of white frosting. She reminds Reyna of Santa Clause, only if Santa ever dye his hair black. She laughs. Reyna grabs a red towel and holds it out to Alison.

"You missed a spot," she tells her. Alison grumpily snatches the napkin and wipes her mouth.

"Thanks," she says and hands Reyna back the towel.

"Jean is on the phone," Reyna says as she walks to the sink. Alison runs out of the room and picks up the phone.

Reyna sees the young woman Alison is growing up to be. She knows the things that Lady Venus and maybe Juno has in store for Alison─love, heartbreak, and marriage. Reyna is glad to see Alison growing up, but she sometimes feel that Alison is quickly slipping from her finger like melting butter. She remembers when Alison would grab her hand and tell her that she only loves her. Reyna is willing to give up anything to relive those precious moments with her daughter:

_Reyna and Alison were at the beach with Luke. Luke had dropped by earlier that day and asked them if they wanted to go to the beach. _

_Reyna sat on the sandy beach with a rainbow-colored towel underneath her and a yellow umbrella. Reyna had on a two piece light gray swim suit and a big yellow straw hat on her head. Her dark hair was down and the tips slightly curled up as the bangs softened her face._

_She saw Luke and Alison in the water as the ocean water touched their feet. Luke held Alison's small hand against his. Luke had on red swim shorts as Alison had on a red swimsuit with polka dots and her blonde hair was curled up into a small afro. Each time the water touched their feet, Alison squealed from delight as Luke laughed._

_She was glad that she saw Luke and Alison having a good time she felt somewhat depressed that she was here at the beach. She thought of Percy Jackson and remembered that he was a good friend to her, even though Reyna used to be cold as ice towards him; she thought of Annabeth Chase and remembered how much Annabeth loved Percy and wondered what they both did in their lives, together._

_She looked up towards the heavens and saw that the sun was slowly setting towards the ocean. The sky looked like it came from a painting with its shade of orange, scarlet and a small touch of purple._

_"Mommy!" Alison squealed. Reyna came back from her trance with the sky and saw that Alison was looking at her._

_"Come!" Luke yelled and did a come signal. Reyna sighed but got up. _

_She felt uncomfortable in her skin because she still had stretch marks on her lower abdominal, but the marks were faint. "What's up?" She asked them. Alison grabbed Reyna's hand as she picked up a shell. Reyna squatted down as she said, "It's pretty."_

_"Not as pretty as you," Alison said, cheeky._

_"Did Luke teach you that?" Reyna asked, half annoyed and half amused._

_"I heard from the people loving each other over there," she said as she pointed a couple that were kissing in the deep waves._

_"Luke, really?" Reyna scolded him._

_"What?" Luke asked, shocked. __Reyna disapprovingly shook her head._

_"Mommy, my skin is red," Alison said. Reyna looked at Alison's arm and saw that it was slightly red._

_"It's not that red," Reyna said._

_"Luke said that I'm turning into a lobster," Alison said, scared. Reyna looked at Luke and she saw that he was trying hard not to laugh._

_"No, you are not turning into a lobster. Luke is going to turn into a mermaid when I send him down into the ocean."_

_"No!" Luke dramatically yelled._

_"Yeah," Reyna said. _

_Luke looked at Alison's arm and saw that it was slightly red too. He had a worried expression when he said, "I'll go get sunscreen." He jogged back to get sunscreen._

_"They love each other," Alison said as she looked at the couple that were kissing in the ocean._

_"Don't look," Reyna scolded. She didn't want Alison to see things that she was too young to see._

_Alison wrapped her small arms around Reyna and hugged her. "I love you," she said._

_"I love you too," Reyna whispered and sat on the wet sand with Alison on her lap._

_"How much do you love me?" Alison asked._

_"A lot," Reyna said as she poked Alison's belly─she giggled. She stroke Alison's hair as she purred like a kitten. "What is wrong with you?" She asked between laugh._

_"I feel loved," Alison said between purrs._

_"You love me right?" _

_"Only you!" Alison exclaimed._

_"That hurts," Luke said, hurt. He sat down next to Reyna and handed her sunscreen; she applied sunscreen on Alison. _

_"Thanks," Reyna thanked. Luke nodded as he looked at the ocean with a sad expression._

_"Is there something wrong?" She asked._

_"Nothing," Luke tiredly said._

_"Are you_─"

_"Lets go," Luke said._

_"Why?" _

_Luke moved his eyes towards the ocean; Reyna looked out towards the ocean and saw the couple that were kissing were doing more than kissing._

_"They're kissing," Alison said._

_"Yeah," Luke lied._

_"I'll go buy you ice cream," Reyna said. Luke, Reyna, and Alison walked back to get their things. _

_Alison turned her head to see the couple but Luke grabbed her head and lightly made her tur her head. "Don't look," he told her._

_"Okay?" She said, confused._

* * *

Alison picks up the phone and says "What's up?"

"Does the sky count?" Jean says.

Alison chuckles. "No, you know what I mean."

"You're coming over tomorow to keep me company."

"I need to ask my─"

"I already asked your mom and she said you can go."

"But you didn't─"

"No, you're coming over, tomorow."

"Am I being held against my will?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"My mom and dad are going to a reunion and I'm not allowed to go."

"Is that why you asked me if I had any plans this weekend?" Alison remembers.

"Yes."

"Is it a high school reunion?"

"I was just told that it was a camp."

"A camp?"

"Yes," Jean confirm.

"Fai, sit up straight," Alison hears someone yell in the background.

"Who is that?" Alison demands.

"My great-grandmother," Jean says, annoy.

"Is your grandma going to be there the entire time?"

"My parents are deciding to take her or not."

Alison can't help but smirk as she imagines Jean to face palming herself. "And?"

"My mom is considering to take her, unlike my dad who is saying no because he doesn't want her telling stories when he was baby."

"I really hope your mom says she'll take her."

"Agreed."

"What time?"

"My parents are leaving like around 4."

"I'll be there like at 3."

"Thank you," Jean said, relieve.

"Okay."

"So what did you and Nick talk about?"

"Is that a reason on why you called."

"No," Jean says in a voice the means yes.

"Truth."

"Partly."

"Percentage?"

"It's 75%."

Alison isn't buying it. "Really?"

"Fine, it's 85.9%."

"Sounds like 99.9%"

She hears Jean laugh. "Why do I have a feeling you want me to tell you in full detail?"

"Because you know me so well," Jean answers.

"I'll tell you when I see you tomorow."

"Now," Jean pleads.

Alison loves torturing Jean like this. "Do you want a sneak peak?"

"Yes!"

"We went out," Alison whispers.

"WHAT!" Jean yells.

"The girl heard you, Jean, and I heard you even though I'm accused to being deaf at times," a female said.

"Sorry, Grandma," Jean apologizes.

"You don't hear me when I talk to you," a male said.

"That's on purpose," Jean's great-grandma replies.

Alison laughs. "I like you grandma."

"What happened!" Jean demands.

"I'll tell you tomorow," Alison says.

"Now," Jean pleads.

"Bye," Alison says.

"Are you falling for him?"

"He's me friend and there's a difference."

"That's messed up."

"But I have my reasons."

"Did you get his number?"

"Yes," she whispers.

"Did he ask?"

"He asked for my phone and I gave it to him." Alison realizes that she didn't reply back to Nick. _Dang it!_

"Tell me what you two did."

"Tomorow," she reminds.

"No, tell me─"

"Bye."

"Tell me. Ugh, nevermind, bye," Jean says. Both girls hang up the phone. Alison heads upstairs to her room.

* * *

After Reyna finish washing the dishes, she walks upstairs and takes a shower. After she takes a shower, she dresses into her pajamas and goes to bed.

She looks up to the ceiling and gives out a huge sigh. She looks around her light brown colored wall room with a porch with white lace curtains, a black plasma TV hangs on the wall under a rectangular dark wood full of Reyna's favorite books on the opposite side of her white king size bed, two nightstands on the side of Reyna's bed with lamps and pictures of Alison and her.

Reyna randomly remembers Alison's mouth covered with frosting. Seeing Alison with her mouth covered in frosting reminds Reyna of Jason:

_Reyna finished baking cinnamon buns and she took them out of the small oven. The kitchen was L shape with light wooded countertops, white painted walls, light wooded cabinet door, a gray refrigerator, and a white stove._

_She saw Jason from the kitchen as he sniffed the air in the living room. He flew in as he grinned._

_"Show off," Reyna said under her breath._

_"I know you like it," Jason said as he laughed._

_Reyna made the frosting for the cinnamon buns but Jason stuck his fingers in the bowl. "Really?" She asked him as she raised an eyebrow._

_"It tastes good," he commented._

_"Have a taste," she said and grabbed a handful of frosting with her hands and smeared it on Jason's face._

_Jason licked the frosting from around his mouth. "Your turn," he said and did the exact thing on Reyna. _

_"I see how it is," she said. She grabbed an open bag of flour and threw it at Jason. "Jason the ghost."_

_"Can I have a hug?" _

_"No," she said as she backed away from him._

_"Come," he said. Reyna ran away from Jason as he followed her. Jason had the brilliant idea of throwing eggs on her._

_After Jason and Reyna finished throwing eggs and flours at each other, Reyna decided to take a shower and Jason volunteered to take a shower. Reyna came to the kitchen after she finished taking a shower and found Jason stuffing his mouth with cinnamon buns and frosting._

_Jason hadn't noticed her when he realized she was staring at him and she sat on the countertop. "You like them?" She asked._

_"Yeah," he innocently said._

_Reyna looked around the kitchen and saw it was in the same conditions as it was before. "Let's start cleaning," she said._

_"You mean you," Jason said._

_She shook her head and threw a towel at his face. "Clean the white beard," she told him._

Reyna thinks back to the question Alison asked her, "You fell in love with him?" I did. I fell for him hard.

"I'm still not sure if he ever did fell in love with me as I did with him," Reyna said. Her heart sinks as she thinks about Jason who probably played her and with her heart.

Tears fall down to Reyna's pillow as she falls asleep.

* * *

Alison goes to her room and picks up her phone.

Nick: She's probably insecure and it makes her feel good about herself when she makes others feel down about themselves.

Alison: Sorry I took long. Anything else?

Nick: She just straight out doesn't like you.

Alison: I didn't know that. *sarcasm*

Nick: She's been overprotective over me ever since we started hanging out.

Alison: She views me as a threat?

Nick: Probably.

Alison: What? Why? I'm just the local, "Goth Queen", girl. She has the boys drooling.

Nick: Geez. Thank for the confidence.

Alison: Honesty.

Nick: Yeah…

Alison: Can I ask you something?

Nick: You already did.

Alison: Ha-ha. :| Do you love her?

Nick: …

Alison: …

Nick: Define love.

Alison: You know exactly what it means.

Nick: I have affection for her, but I don't love her. I'm just in a relationship with her.

Alison: I can totally imagine girls sighing in relief if they ever read that text.

Nick: Cool.

Alison and Nick text back and forth until Alison drifts off to sleep.

* * *

Reyna wakes up and brushes her teeth and fixes her hair. She goes downstairs with a robe and grabs bagels and starts making coffee. Reyna rarely drinks coffee, but she woke up with a headache and coffee usually calms her headaches.

The door rings and Reyna answers it. "Good morning," Luke greets and invites himself in. Reyna is already use to Luke walking into her home so she doesn't mind. She closes the door and goes to the kitchen where Luke follows.

"Good morning," she greets.

"Beautiful morning," he comments.

"Is there a reason why you're here?" Reyna politely asks.

"You said I can visit whenever I wanted," he reminds.

"Did you feel alone?" Reyna says as she looks amuse.

"Yeah," Luke confesses as he sits on the table.

Reyna grabs a mug and serves Luke coffee. "Milk?" She asks.

"Yeah," Luke says. Reyna goes to the fridge and get milk, but gets sugar from the cabinet as she walks towards Luke. "Did you just woke up?"

"Yup." She looks at her champagne pink pajama pants and button down shirt under her white robe.

"I like the color."

"Thanks." Reyna is use to being in her pajamas in front of Luke because Luke would sometimes stay over when he helped Reyna study when she was in law school.

She hears her mail slot open and closes. Reyna gets up and walks to the door where she sees a bunch of mail scatter on the floor. She grabs them and quickly scans them as she walks back to the kitchen. A purple envelope grabs her attention; she flips it over to see where it's from and she sees SPQR around a golden eagle. She drops the envelopes and feels that she's drowning. _It can't be. Why? After all these years…_

"Reyna," Luke says, panic. Reyna's hands tremble and her eyes fills with tears. "I'm here." He opens his arms and without hesitation Reyna runs into them and holds on to them as if her life depends on it. Luke wraps his arms tightly around her as he gently pays her back. Tears leak out of Reyna's obsidian color eyes.

_Did they knew that I was here the whole time? Does Jason know? Will I ever be left alone?_

* * *

**I know it's a cliffhanger and I know many of you didn't expect for Luke to be there.**

**Review!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Now the chapter that many of you guys are anticipating…**

* * *

_"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."_

_-Mahatma Gandhi_

* * *

Reyna cries inside of Luke strong arms. She can't believe that they know where she lives. She knows she hasn't done anything wrong but she still can't shake the feeling that she must've done something. She hasn't been near Camp Jupiter for 14 years!

"It's okay," Luke whispers.

She wraps her arms around Luke's neck as if he's a life boat that Reyna is desperately to hold on. "I'm not even sure if it'll be okay," she confesses.

Luke releases his grip on her and looks at her with his index finger affectionately stroking her jaw line. "Think happy," he tells her. Reyna looks at Luke's crystal like blue eyes. _He's actually quite handsome. Think happy, _she thinks.

"I can't."

"I'll help you," he assures her.

* * *

"Jason!" A male sings.

Jason groans as he rolls on his bed.

"Gracie, get your butt up!" Another male yells.

"Shut up!" Jason yells.

"Make me," male one says.

"Out!" Jason orders as he sits up from his bed and pulls away the blue sheets.

"We got mail," Bobby says like he's a robot.

Dakota shrugs. "It's not as bad as his singing," he comments.

"Rude." Bobby swaps Dakota's arm.

"Ouch!" Dakota rubs his arm.

"Jace, we'll have breakfast ready," Bobby says as he pinches Dakota's ear.

"You guys wait!" Jason says as he gets up.

"I knew you would," Bobby winks and leaves as he's still pinching Dakota's ear.

"Let him go," Jason orders.

Bobby pouts as he says, "Fine" and walks finally leaves with Dakota trailing behind him.

Jason shakes his head and makes his bed. He looks around the rooms and makes sure everything is in check. The room has light gray walls with a dark gray stripe running through the middle of the walls, a blue cover bed with dark wood as a backboard, two night stands made of metal that has small holes in the metal with pictures and a lamp, a large window on the opposite side of the doorway with light blue silk sheets, a gray flat screen TV on glass TV unit with DVDs, Wii, Playstation, Xbox and video games on the shelf, and a small slide open closet with a large mirror next to it near the exit. Jason sits on his bed and open his drawer where he finds a small oval shape locket made of gold. He opens it and he sees the picture of him and Reyna smiling as they have their arms around each other on a hill.

Jason feels his heart sink. "I miss you," he says as he looks at the picture of the two of them. "I hope you're happy wherever you are," he whispers as he feels his eyes start to water.

* * *

Alison wakes up and stretches. She sits up and realizes that she's still in her clothes. She gets out of bed and changes into her pjs because if her mom sees that she's still in her clothes she'll have a fit.

"Let's see what I have clean," she jokes. She goes inside her closet and scans her pjs. She grabs a long-sleeve blue and white stripe shirt, and a checker color blue and white shirt. She dresses and heads to the bathroom where she brushes her teeth. She leaves the bathroom and heads downstairs.

Alison finds Luke and her mom sitting on the table. She's a bit in shock that Luke's here, but Luke has been a close father figure to her ever since she was a little kid.

"Luke!" She squeals. Alison never squeals but Luke is an exception.

"Alice!" Luke exclaims as he gets up from his chair as he opens his arms as Alison runs into them.

"How are you?" She asks as she pulls away from Luke.

"Fine," he says as he messes up her hair with his hand. Sure, Alison loves him to death but she hates it when he messes up her hair.

She finally looks at her mom and sees that her obsidian eyes seems like a mirror that has cracks. Around Reyna's eyes, she sees that they're slightly puffy. _What's wrong?_ she wants to ask. Reyna blinks and Alison sees that her eyes have return to their usual hard self.

"Anything new, Goldilocks?" Luke teases.

A small growl escapes from the bottom of Alison's throat, but not as threatening but messing with him as Luke already know. He raises his hands as if he just arrested. "Hands up," she says in a officers tone.

"I should make breakfast," Reyna announces as she gets up from her chair and heads towards the kitchen.

"I'm sorry," Luke apologizes.

"Anything you say or do will be used against you during court," Alison dramatically says. Luke laughs.

"I can totally imagine your mom acting like that," he says between laughs.

"I heard that," Reyna says from the kitchen.

Alison scans the room and sees a purple envelope. "What's this?"

* * *

Luke sees Alison look at the floor as she sees the purple envelope. He feel that get a mini heart attack and tries not to freak out. He looks at Reyna and sees that she looks that she's about to break down in tears.

"That's mine," Luke answers as he gets the envelope from the floor without looking at its detail.

"Why did you bring it here?" Alison asks. Just like your mother, he thinks.

"It's this…" he drifts off.

"Cooking recipe that Luke sent to this company and that's probably the reply because it looked like he had a mini heart attack when he came," Reyna says. _Great, just great._

"Really?" Alison asks. Luke has known Alison her whole life and he knows she ain't buying it.

"I'm notorious for my blueberry pancakes," Luke cockily says as he digs dirt from under his fingernails.

"My mom does blueberry pancakes," Alison says in a tone that seems to be challenging him.

"Between me and your mom, I'm the winner," Luke says as he props his hands behind his back.

"Sweety, he's just afraid to loose," Reyna playfully says.

"I did not just get denied about my pancaking skill," Luke says, hurt.

"Dang!" Alison exclaims and moves her hand rapidly like she touch something hot.

He narrows his eyes on Reyna and she does the same thing. "It's on," he dangerously says.

"Bring it," Reyna says.

* * *

"Are you in cloud 9, Gracie?" Bobby asks.

"Alright," Jason says as he puts away the pocket. He grabs a shirt from the closet and puts it on. He walks down the peach color hallway, past the living room and into the kitchen. The kitchen is large with white tiles, light brown color cabinets, marble countertops with appliances, a gray color stove with a view to the backyard, a dish washer on the far left, and a fridge to the right.

Bobby and Dakota sit on the countertops as they wait for Jason.

"About time," Bobby says.

"Is it my fault that my best buds get up early?" Jason asks.

"It's all our faults," Dakota says. Yesterday at night, the trio had gone out where Dakota almost got arrested on the beach because he was running around like a hooligan, Bobby tried avoiding a lady who turned out being a cougar, and Jason tried to avoid glares from men when their girlfriends looked at him in awe.

"That lady wanted some sugar," Jason teases Bobby.

Bobby scowls but comes up with a smart comeback, "I wouldn't say the same thing because those guys wanted to show you the color purple."

"You guys are such big babies," Dakota complains.

"We had to prevent the police officers to not take you to the police station," Bobby frowns.

"I, at least, stick to girls that are my age," he shot back.

"Quit it," Jason tells them. He sometimes wonder why he has them as roommates. Oh, yeah, they're my best friends.

"I'm hungry," Dakota complains.

"I'll grab scramble eggs," Bobby says as he plops off the countertop and goes to the fridge and grabs a carton of eggs.

"Grab the bacon," Jason tells Bobby.

Dakota grabs a loaf of bread—to make toast—from the cabinet and 3 packets of Kool-Aid. Jason glares at him in a, _Put that down,_ expression that says he is not happy about it. "Do you want me to try wine?" He innocently asks.

"No," he quickly says and shakes his head.

"He still goes on a sugar high," Bobby chimes in.

"Whatever," Dakota says.

After the scramble eggs, bacon and toast are done, the boys serve themselves and go to the dining room. The dining room is large with a rectangular shape dark wood table with a white cloth in top of it, peach color walls, and a screen door at the end of the room that leads to the backyard.

"What's that?" Dakota asks as he first sits down. He grabs the 3 purple envelopes on the table and examines them. He sees SPQR in gold lettering along with an eagle.

"From the legion," Bobby says in awe. He takes a bite from his toast and reaches for his envelope.

"I hope they don't want us to go on a quest," Jason says.

His two friends chuckle. "Even though we won't admit it, we're to old for that now," Dakota says but with a slight ting of sadness.

"You miss the hectic life of a demigod?" Bobby teases.

"Well, we sometimes have to fight monsters when they come but that quickly turns into a pain in the buns," Dakota says.

"We could've stayed in New Rome," Jason says. Dakota and Bobby sheepishly grin. Jason knows exactly why his friend don't want to go back to New—they don't want Jason to be depress because that was the last time he ever saw her. Jason appreciates what they're doing for him, but he doesn't want his friends to sacrifice their happiness for New Rome and be stuck with him.

"It's not that," Bobby says.

"Then?" Jason asks.

"We couldn't let you go," Dakota says.

"Even though you're annoying at times," Bobby says.

"Gee, I feel loved," Jason sarcastically says.

Dakota hands Jason his envelope and tells them "We can open them after we eat."

Bobby and Jason sit at the table and slowly brings the food to their mouths. "Screw it," Dakota says and shoves his mouth with food. His friends laugh and shove their mouths with food.

* * *

Reyna and Luke are next to each other as they're making blueberry pancakes. Personally, Reyna thinks this is silly about this contest. But, from the corner of her eye, she can see Alison really amuse. Alison smiles from cheek to cheek and Reyna starts to think if she has glue on her face.

Reyna flips the pancake and grabs a plate. She slides the pancake on a plate that already has 2 of them. Luke flips the pancake and does the same thing that Reyna did.

Luke takes his pancakes and puts them in front of Alison as Alison sits on the table. "Am I the food critic?" She asks.

"Who knows their food any better than you?" He teases.

Reyna smiles and takes her pancakes in places them in front of Alison. "Taste," she tells her.

Alison grabs her fork and knife and slices a piece of Luke's batch of pancakes and stuff it in her mouth. Her blue eyes pop open and she swallows. "That's good," she congrats.

"As always," he says and bows.

"Whatever," Reyna says under her breath and crosses her arms.

Alison slices a piece of Reyna's pancakes and Reyna feels that she's at the edge of her seat. She eats the slice. "That's good," she says.

"Which is better?" Luke mysteriously asks.

"Mom has more blueberry so I think she's the winner," Alison says.

"Yes!" Reyna exclaims as her hands shoots up to the air.

Luke puts his head down from defeat. "Just great," he says.

Reyna laughs. She catches herself off guard. She feels _happy. _The only thing that can ruin Reyna being happy is the letter. She's a bit surprise that Luke hasn't question her to tell him what kind of letter it is. Reyna doesn't want to open it. She wants to tear it apart and forget that it was ever mysteriously sent to her door.

"What time is it?" Luke asks. Reyna breaks away from her thoughts.

"What?" Reyna asks, confuse.

"It's around ten," Alison answers.

"I don't know about you but I'm going to feast," Luke says and takes the fork and knife from Alison's hand and slices a piece of pancake for himself. "This is delicious," he says with his mouth full of blueberry pancake.

Reyna smiles and notices something. She leans forward into her chair with her elbows the back of the chair. "Whose pancake did you taste?" She asks him.

Luke stares down at the pancake he just tasted ans realizes that it belongs to Reyna. "I mean, this is the worst pancake I have ever tasted," he says as crumbs escape Luke's mouth.

Alison laughs. "Admit it," she tells him.

"Whatever," Luke says.

Reyna returns to the kitchen and comes back with two sets of forks and knives. She hands the a set to Alison and Reyna sits with Luke and Alison and together they enjoy the pancake.

* * *

Between eating pancakes and talking, Luke, Alison and Reyna laugh together. Alison can't help but look at this in a family perspective. Every since she was small she always imagined having breakfast with her dad and even though Luke wasn't her dad she considers him her dad. For example, when Reyna was sometimes busy doing her homework for law school, Luke would sometimes take Alison for ice cream and those were the moments she cherishes with Luke.

"Remember when Steve Earl got his head shaved and tattooed his wife's name and they ended up divorcing, and she ended up trying to bleach his head one night to loosen up the ink," Luke says between laugh. Alison's mom laughs and slightly smiles. Alison loves seeing her smile.

"I remember his mug shot of white eyebrows and albino skin," Reyna says.

"Sad thing that the bleach didn't work," Luke says not looking sorry at all.

"I remember those groupies that were all over you and Beckendorf when you two had to investigate a strip club," Reyna says.

"Woah, Luke, I didn't know you had it in you," Alison says in fake awe.

"It could've been worse," Luke reminds.

"Meaning Beckendorf jizzing in his pants," Reyna seriously says but quickly laughs. Luke and Alison join into the laughter.

"I still wonder what Beck told Silena on why he jizzed in his pants," Luke says as he wipes his eyes from laughing so hard.

"I'm guessing it took a long time to take away the stench on the pants," Alison assumes.

"Yes," he answers.

"Mom, I can still go over to Jean's house right?" Alison asks.

"Sure, what are her parents names?" Reyna asks.

"Her dad's name is Fai and I forgot what her mom's name is," Alison says. She honestly does not know the name of Jean's mom.

"Alright," Reyna says.

"I'll go upstairs and get ready then," Alison says and gets up from her chair.

"Alright, Goldilocks," Luke says.

"Shut up," she says and head upstairs.

* * *

Jason grabs his envelopes and feels his hand slightly shaking.

"Together?" Dakota asks.

"Together," Jason and Bobby repeat.

"One," Dakota says,

"Two," Bobby says.

"Three," Jason says. The trio rip open their envelopes and slowly pulls out the letter.

* * *

Reyna sits on her chair with her hands in her hair. "Where's the envelope?" She asks him and drops her hands.

Luke hands her the envelope. "You're not ready to open it," he tells her.

"Why?" She asks.

"I don't know why that envelope is causing you so much stress."

"It just brings back memories," she confesses.

Luke sighs and put his hand on top of hers. "Like?"

"I'm not ready to talk about it," she tells him. Luke takes his other hands and puts it on the same hand that he holds Reyna's hand. With his thumb, he circles Reyna's back hands. She feels a rush of relief.

"It feels a bit odd," she confesses.

"Why?"

"I haven't had touched a hand other than my daughter for the last 14 years."

"I haven't held a girl's hand in a while," he teases. Reyna clicks her tongue and Luke laughs.

"According to you, when will I be ready?" She asks.

"When you feel mentally happy, when you say happy things, and when you actually feel happy," he says.

"How can I achieve that?" She asks.

"Doing something happy," he says, grinning.

"What do you suggest?" She pulls her hands away.

"We can take a walk to the park," he suggests.

"Is this an invitation?" Reyna curiously asks.

"Well, you need to be mentally ready to read it."

"True," she agrees.

"So?"

"Fine."

* * *

Alison goes to her room and walks to her closet. She chooses a pair a white and blue stripe long-sleeve shirt, burgundy pants, and her normal Converse.

She grabs her phone from her the bed and dials Jean's number:

"Hello?"

"I can still come over right?"

"Yeah," Jean nervously says.

"Is there something wrong?"

"No, not at all."

"Okay?"

"I'll see you soon."

"Alright."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Alison hangs up and goes to the bathroom.

"Potty break," she tells herself.

* * *

"I should go get ready," Reyna says as she pulls a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Okay," Luke says.

Reyna gets up and walks to her room. She opens her closet and begins to asses what she's going to wear. Finally, she chooses dark blue jeans, a beige color button down shirt, and lavender color flats. Reyna walks to the bathroom and looks at herself and decides to tuck in her shirt. She brushes her hair and ties it into her normal braid. Reyna leans into the mirror as she examines her face. She gently touches her face with the tips of her fingers and sees that her eyes are still puffy.

At the corner corner of Reyna's eye, she spots her make-up kit that she hardly ever use. She reaches out to grab t but when she's halfway there she stops and starts to hesitate; she rarely ever uses make-up, but her puffy eyes bother her. She grabs the kit and looks at it.

The make-up kit is small with pink silk on the outside with a golden zipper across the square shape kit. Silena gave the make-up kit to Reyna last Christmas and Reyna barely touches unless it involves moving it to one place to another.

Reyna slowly unzips the zipper and grabs a black brush.

* * *

Alison goes downstairs and finds Luke sitting down on the table.

"Where's my mom?" Alison asks.

"She went upstairs and getting dressed," Luke answers.

"Oh." In Luke's hand, Alison sees the purple envelope she saw earlier. "What that?" She asks as she points at it.

"This? It's just a letter that I got."

"I know that it's a letter."

"Yeah," Luke says and his eyes wander around the room and not on Alison. She understand that Luke doesn't want to talk about the letter. _But why?_

"Are you going somewhere with my mom?"

"We're going to get some fresh air."

"Meaning?" She curiously asks.

"At the park."

"Just so you know, agree with whatever my mom says when she's mad."

Luke laughs and says "I'm well aware of it."

_Now the hard question. _"Why was my mom crying earlier?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Luke says as he looks up at the ceiling.

"Cut it out," Alison says.

"It was just allergies," he explains.

Aliosn crosses her arms. "Allergies?"

"You know how your mom is…" he drifts off.

She knows that if she keeps asking Luke what was wrong with her mom, Luke will say that she just had allergies. "Okay?"

"Goldilocks, how's school?" He asks as he smirks.

"It's fine."

"How about those two girls?"

"They haven't done anything wrong." If you don't count the coffee incident and when me and Mackenzie bumped into each other.

"Are you happy at school?"

"Yup," she sprightly says.

"You sure?" Luke raises an eyebrow.

"Yup," she assures. Honestly, Alison is happy at school but it's what Mackenzie does at school that ruins her mood.

She hears her mom go down the stairs and she and Luke turns to see Reyna's grand entrance.

* * *

Reyna walks downstairs. She finish applying blush to her cheeks, lip balm, and mascara. She looks beautiful and looks natural.

Alison wolf whistles. Reyna glares at Alison and Alison simply smirks. "You finally wear a bit of a make-up."

"Now you have to wear."

Alison defiantly shakes her head and sticks out her tongue from disgust. "No," she says and cringes.

"She has a point," Luke tells Alison.

"No," Alison says.

Luke laughs and gave a sympathetic shrug at Reyna that means I tried.

"Should I take you to Jean's house?"

"Yup," she says.

Reyna walks outside to the car and Alison and Luke soon follow.

* * *

Before Luke goes outside, he examines the purple envelope. He sees an eagle with the words "SPQR" on it. The symbols look very familiar to Luke. Where have I seen them?

He grabs the envelope and heads out.

* * *

Alison is the front of Jean's house. Jean's house is two stories with the outside white, red color Mansford style roof, stairs that lead to the front door entrance and a small porch, and a big front lawn full of flowers and trees.

"Is Jean there?" Reyna asks.

Alison nods and looks out the window. She sees Jean peep her head out the window from behind a black curtain and hurries outside. Jean has on light blue jeans and a light orange shirt with the word "Love" in gold lettering, and moccasins. She waves.

"That's me," Alison says as she starts to head out of the car.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do," Luke warns.

"Alright," she says. _You're worst than my own mother, and that's a hard thing to do._

"Be safe," her mom says.

"Bye," Alison says.

"Bye, Sport," Luke says. Alison gets out of the car and walks to Jean.

"What up, Zhang Attack?" Alison teases.

Jean rolls her dark eyes. "Are you still on that?"

"Absolutely."

"Come inside," Jean says and steps aside for Alison to come inside.

"Okay," Alison says and marches inside.

* * *

Reyna sees her daughter get inside Jean's house. She zips off.

"Where shall we go?" she asks.

Luke chuckles.

"What?" she demands.

"Who uses 'shall' now a days?"

Reyna moves one of her hands from the steering wheel and slaps Luke on the arm. "Ouch!"

"You deserve an Oscar award for that," she comments.

"Thank," he sarcastically said.

"Where shall we go?" Reyna repeats.

"Do you have bread with you?"

"We just ate pancakes a while ago!" Reyna exclaims.

Luke raises an eyebrow and says "Who says I want to eat the bread?"

"What else can you do with bread?"

"Drive to the store so we can get the bread," he tells her.

"Why?"

"You'll see."

"See what?"

"The future."

"The future on what I want to do with the bread."

"Fine," Reyna mutters.

"Thank you," he politely says.

* * *

The inside of Jean's house has beige color walls, dark wood floors with a small lanterns hanging from the ceiling. The living room has a large portrait in Chinese handwriting, red color sofas, a small glass coffee table, a large black plasma TV, and a glass cabinet full of Chinese porcelain dolls.

"Can you read Chinese?" Alison asks.

"Sort of," Jean confesses.

"Oh," she says.

"Can you speak in another language?" Jean asks.

"Yeah," she says.

"What?"

"Latin, Spanish and a bit of Greek."

"I can talk Latin, French and French Canadian, and a tad of Chinese."

"Isn't French and French Canadian the same thing?"

"There wouldn't be two names for it."

"True."

"Fai, fix that tie! You look messy like raccoon after its gone through dumpster diving," a woman says.

"Grandma," a male complains.

"Frank, fix your tie."

"Yes dear."

A heavy Chinese man appear with white skin and dark eyes with a buzz cut haircut. He has on a black suit with a red tie that is messily tied. With the Chinese man is a woman with coco color skin, frizzy light brown hair tied into a bun but her bangs drape from her forehead, and golden color eyes. She has on a sky blue dress that falls to her knees with straps and a heart shape neckline, a white belt around her small waist, a small pearl necklace around her neck, and white high heels with straps. Finally, an elderly old women with a cane. She has white crinkly skin, black hair but the roots are gray tied into a tight bun, a white short sleeve dress with a dark blue shawl on top of her. She tightly grips her bamboo cane and looks at Alison with interest.

"What's your name?" She asks.

Alison stands up straight and approaches the old woman. "My name is Alison," she introduces.

"You can call me Mrs. Zhang," Mrs. Zhang says.

"Okay," Alison says.

"My name is Hazel," Hazel says and briefly hugs her.

Alison looks at Frank and sees that he's awkwardly looking at her until his wife, Hazel, nudges him. "Frank. Frank Zhang." He holds out his hand and Alison firmly shakes it.

"Umm, I'll go take Alison to my room," Jean says and grabs Alison's hand as she take her up the stairs. Alison turns back and she sees that Mrs. Zhang is still looking at her with the same interest.

* * *

"Does she remind you of—" Frank says before his wife interrupts him.

"Thalia," Hazel whispers. Hazel looks at her mother-in-law and sees that she's in deep concentration. "Is there something wrong?" She asks.

"Nothing my child. Jean's friend strikes me as a strong independent young woman. The force is strong with this one."

"Are you feeling okay? Do you want to stay?" Frank asks. As much as he loves his grandmother, he doesn't want her to go because she'll embarrass him.

Mrs. Zhang smiles and snaps, "I am. I can't say much about you and the Chinese food."

Frank grunts and Mrs. Zhang smiles from a battle she has just won.

Hazel knows well that after all these years happily married to Frank and living with his grandmother to not get into there arguments. "We're leaving," she says.

Mrs. Zhang looks at Hazel and takes her hands. Mrs. Zhang knows that Hazel has grown into a beautiful young mother and a great warrior in the battlefield. "I'm staying," she tells her.

"Why?" Hazel asks. Hazel hears in the background that Frank is fist pumping.

"I'll pop in later," she tells her. _That Alison girl interests me._

* * *

Reyna is at a small pond with Luke. She's sitting next to Luke on a bench under a big tree. Earlier, she and Luke bought a loaf of break and it turns out Luke wanted it to throw it at the birds.

She throws a piece of bread at the pigeon and laughs. "How is that possible?"

Luke shrugs. "Birds will do anything to get a piece of bread."

"I didn't know they were willing to attack a baby!"

"I didn't know that either."

"But that's just plain weird."

"Are you happy?" Luke asks.

"Yes," she honestly tells him.

"Are you thinking of happy thought?"

"Does a baby being attacked by pigeons count?"

"I guess," he shrugs.

"Yup," she says.

Luke takes out the purple envelope and gives it to Reyna. "I think your ready."

Reyna takes the envelope and doesn't feel sad about it anymore. She rips it open and pulls out the letter.

* * *

Jason's envelope reads:

"Dear Jason Grace,

You are invited to celebrate 15 years on the battle between the gods and Mother Earth. The reunion will be held at Camp Jupiter with all Greek and Roman guest invited to celebrate and retell the tales of our time on the great battlefield. We hope to see you soon.

Signed,

The Roman Legion"

"It's reunion," Bobby realizes.

"I know," Jason says. Behind the letter is a small card the reads:

"Location: Camp Jupiter

When: Around 4 o'clock in the afternoon.

Clothing: Preferably suits and dresses, but normal wear is accepted.

Take this card with you when you go at the entrance."

"Do you think everyone got the letter?" Bobby asks.

"Yes," Dakota answers.

Jason feels a bump in his throat from what he's about to say. "Do you think _she_ got a letter?"

"If Mercury did his job," Dakota says.

"So, I might see her again," Jason says as his serious face breaks into a smile.

"Yeah," Bobby says.

_I can't wait to see you again._ He kisses the card as if it's her.

But Bobby has to ruin the moment when he says "Don't kiss that peace of paper too hard."

"Shut it, Bobby," Dakota says and slaps him on the arm.

* * *

"Maybe I'll go away for you can read it," Luke suggest and gets up.

"Yeah," Reyna agrees. Luke walks away and gets closer to the birds as he throws pieces of bread.

Reyna reads:

Dear Reyna daughter of Bellona,

You are invited to attend a reunion with the people who fought on the battlefield on that day. No one can forget the courage and strength you summoned to lead the Roman soldiers. The Romans never forget when good has been done to them. You are the guest of honor and you can bring any guest that you wish.

Signed,

The Roman Legion SPQR

Lupa"

Reyna feels a bit shock that she's the guest of honor. She's more in shock when she sees Lupa's paw-print on the letter—Lupa hardly ever does that.

Behind the letter is a card with the location and time. Luke comes back and sits me to her. Reyna approaches Luke and leans her had onto his shoulder. She doesn't know if she should go.

_I don't want to see you, Jason._

* * *

**I'm sorry for no flashbacks. I'll probably do flashbacks that Jason remembers. The locket means something!**

**By the way, in genetics it is possible for a blonde baby's hair to turn black—I If I remember correctly.**

**I didn't bother to check the grammar because I'm about to go to school. I'll check it when I get back!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Here you go…**

* * *

_"Happiness often sneaks in through a door you didn't know you left open."_

_-__John Barrymore_

* * *

Reyna really doesn't know what to do. She only knows that she doesn't want to see Jason. She feels that she isn't ready yet now will she ever.

"Are you okay?" Luke asks, interrupting Reyna on her thinking.

"I'm fine," she assures them.

"What was the letter about?"

"It's about this reunion."

"I'm guessing you don't want to go."

"Yep," she says, looking at the ground.

"Why?"

"I just don't want to."

"Is it because of Alison's dad?"

Reyna's obsidian eyes shot up as she meets Luke's blue eyes. "How do you—"

"I've known you long enough," he interrupts.

Reyna gulps as she takes a deep breath. "I really don't want to talk about it."

"Come on," he says and takes her hand. Reyna and Luke walk on the side of the pond with their hands loosely together. She feels such a calm when Luke holds her hand. She hasn't been able to calm down by a single touch in a long time:

_Reyna was furious as she paced around the apartment. She was ticked off by Octavian who accused her on acting like a Greek. I am not a Greek, she furiously thought._

_Jason walked in with the New Rome Newspaper in his hand. He stood bewildered as he saw Reyna pace around the apartment. "Don't wear out the wooden floor," he teases._

_"I'm not in the mood for your comments," she snapped. She thought of ways to painfully murder Octavian. Me being Greek, she thought, impossible._

_"What's wrong?" Jason asked._

_"Octavian," she venomously said._

_Jason narrowed his eyes as he asked, "What did he do?"_

_"He said I'm a 'Greek' and just because I said that we worked with the Greeks."_

_"Octavian will never accept the Greeks," Jason said as he rolled his blue eyes._

_"But he said that I'm a Greek," Reyna said as she pointed at each word that she said._

_Jason walked behind Reyna and slowly reached for her hand. He tenderly and very carefully traced circles on the back of her hand._

_"Why do you do that?" She complained._

_"It calm you down," he said in a hush tone._

_"I know."_

"Do you think I should go?" Reyna asks.

"Are you ready?" Luke asks her.

"I don't know."

"Do you still love him?"

"What?"

"You heard me."

"I really don't know anymore."

"Can you ever love someone like you loved him?"

"Maybe."

"Do you want to?"

"I want to have someone I can talk to and make me happy."

"You want someone you can hold but yet have a friendly relationship with?"

"Not friends with benefits," Reyna says as she fights the urge to smile.

Luke chuckles and squeezes her hand. "Not like that."

"I'm open to whatever comes at me."

"I believe you."

"You should."

* * *

Alison and Jean go upstairs to Jean's room. Jean's room has light green color walls with white-painted flowers. To the wall, is a medium size bed with beige color sheets and dark color shelves that hang on the wall that has books, jars of marble—her collection—, and miniature statues of horses. On the side of the bed, are small white drawers.

Across the bed, is a medium size plasma TV on top of a medium size shelf. Near the TV, is another shelf but a regular one full of books, snow globes, Chinese porcelain dolls, and miniature horse statues. There's also a small balcony that has small pots of flowers with 2 light wood rocking chairs.

"I see you still have your horse obsession," Alison teases as she grabs a miniature brown horse with a dark brown mane.

"Yup," Jean says as she lays down on her bed. She pays the place next to her for Alison to come and lay down with her.

Alison does what Jean wants and lays down, staring at the popcorn ceiling. "Anything new?" She asks.

"Tell me about you and Nick," Jean automatically says.

Alison can't help but laugh. "You aren't that secretive on wanting to know about that."

"Cut to the chase," Jean says.

Alison then launches herself into full detail about her time with Nick—she even tells her about Jason and Dakota.

"So that was it," Alison says as she grins.

Jean is fangirling. "He totally likes you."

"Again?" Alison groans.

"He likes you!" she squeals.

"Shut up. I don't want your grandma to come up and say 'You girls remind me of girls my days when they actually had a date.'"

"I'm single. And I'm proud."

"Amen," Alison says and high-fives Jean. The door knocks and the girls burst into giggles.

"Dang it," Jean says.

"Come in," Alison says. The door opens and it reveals a tall guy with jet-black, greenish-greyish eyes, and slightly tan skin. He had on worn blue jeans, a neon green polo shirt, and a black beanie. He's cute, Alison thinks. Jean grabs a pillow and throws it at him.

"Really, Jean?" he asks.

"Out."

"My parents said I have to stay with you."

"Who said you can stay here?"

"No, you—"

"Should stay," Alison interrupts. He smiles and closes the door.

"What's your name?" he asks.

"Aaron, that's none—"

"Jean, your worse than Frank when he embarrasses you in our father outings."

Alison laughs. "Jean, why haven't you told me."

Jean fiercely crosses her arms and pouts. "It's embarrassing."

"You should've been there when—" Aaron says.

"When his dad almost shot one of my uncles, Leo, in the rear end," Jean interrupts.

Aaron shrugs. "Archery isn't in my blood."

"But it is in mine." Jean sticks out her tongue.

"I'm Michael Phelps in the water," Aaron says and moves his arms in a swimming motion which results for his beanie to fall off.

"Fail!" Jean yells.

"Jean Emily Zhang, you sound like a loose canon, keep talking and I'll send you to the crazy hospital like when I used to threaten your father when he refused to eat Brussels sprouts when he was small," Grandma Zhang says from downstairs.

"Brussels sprouts delicious," Alison sarcastically says. Jean and Aaron laugh.

"Aaron, come outside," Jean says and gets off of her bed.

"I didn't do anything," Aaron says.

"Hurry up," Jean says and opens the door.

"Are guys gonna talk smack behind my back?" Alison playfully asks.

"I just have to lay down some rules," Jean assures her.

Aaron walks to Jean but falls halfway to the door. "Someone forgot how to use her legs."

"I'm a he," Aaron corrects from the floor.

"Hurry up, if we keep arguing I'm going to fight with you like Clarisse and your dad always did."

"And do." Jean walks down the hall and Aaron closes the door, before he winks at Alison.

"Should I be Ninja Alison or become Spider woman?" Alison asks herself out loud.

* * *

"Just so you know, me and you are going dress shopping." Luke stands up and pulls Reyna's hand.

"You're wearing a dress?" Reyna asks.

"Shut up." He laughs.

"I don't want to," Reyna moans.

"Come on. You have to look foxy."

"Foxy?" Reyna says and laughs.

Luke's cheeks turn pink and he sits down next to Reyna. "You make fun of me too much."

"I do not."

"Do too." He pokes her belly.

* * *

"Wait!" Dakota says.

"What?" Bobby asks as he turns to him.

"I just realized something."

"Amuse me, Sherlock." Bobby crosses his arms.

"Be nice," Jason tells Bobby.

"Yeah, after all these years you can't say anything nice to me."

"Kota, that's just how we roll. Plus, you've hardly ever given me a reason since your drunk all the time."

"Excuse me?" Dakota asks, offensively.

"Quit it," Jason orders. "Spit it out, Kota."

"Oh, couldn't you ask Mercury where _she_ lives, you know, since he's the messenger god," Dakota says.

"Kota has a point."

"I could've found her a long time ago," he realizes.

"But—the gods really can't mess with our lives," Dakota points out.

"As long as it's Venus because she is nosey," Bobby sassily says.

"I hope she's not listening right now," Dakota groans.

"True."

"We need to workout," Dakota decides.

"Bobby can go."

"Why me?" Bobby asks, shock.

"Me and Jace did our workouts yesterday?" Dakota flexes.

"Oh, yeah, rolling down a hill." Bobby rolls his eyes.

"It's good exercise for the core," Dakota seriously says, hands on his hips. Jason laughs.

"We can take a walk."

"Not something huge because we don't do anything physical like we used to when we were in the legion," Bobby states.

After much fighting and punches the trio are in shorts and are wearing white undershirts for their jog.

"Come on muchachos," Bobby says. Jason has dark blue short, Dakota has purple shorts, and Bobby has red shorts.

"Yay," Jason unenthusiastically says.

"Come on," Dakota says. Together, they jog out the door.

* * *

"I didn't do anything," Aaron says in his defense.

"Who said you did something?" Jeans asks him. They are downstairs and Alison is upstairs.

"You did apparently," he says.

"I have to lay down a few rules," Jean says.

"What? I can't have sugar since it's bad for me. Come on, my mom gives me that speech," Aaron complains.

"Annabeth has a point. But it's your dad that ends up giving you the candy, according to my mom."

"True."

"Rule one: Don't say anything about the gods. Number two—"

"I know."

"Listen to me. Number two: Stay away from her because she is my friend."

"What's her name by the way?"

"Alison," she cautiously says.

"She looks a lot like Thalia."

"I know."

"But in a cute—"

"One of the rules was to stay away from her."

"Do I have to promise?"

"Yes." Jean crosses her arms.

"I can't do River Styx because both you and I know that I'll break it."

"She doesn't know who we are."

"Jean, stop it, we're not aliens," Aaron says in a sassy tone.

"You listen to me, Aaron D—"

"Jackson. Aaron Jackson. I don't want you using my middle name, _Emily,"_ Aaron says but he emphasize, "Emily."

Jean punches Aaron's arm as hard as she can. "Take that," she snarls.

"Ouch," Aaron says as he rubs his arm.

"Don't call me that."

"Okay, Cowgirl."

"I like horses not cows."

"Oh, hush, you, I know you know exactly what I mean."

"But don't call me that."

"Okay, Cowgirl."

"Alright, Waterboy."

"It's better than Seaweed Brain," Aaron comments. Jean can't help but laugh at his comment.

Alison let three minutes past as she debates with herself. _Should I go? Should I not go?_

"I'm going," she tells herself. Alison get off the bed and walk out of the bedroom. She doesn't see Jean and Aaron but she hears whispering from downstairs. She walks to the stairs but squats down and doesn't go down.

"She looks a lot like Thalia." She hears Aaron.

"I know." She hears Jean says. She knows Jason, she thinks.

"But in a cute—"

"One of the rules was to stay away from her." He thinks I'm cute, Alison thinks. She feel heat in her cheeks but quickly snaps out of it. No, you do not like him, she tells herself.

"Do I have to promise?"

"Yes."

"I can't do River Styx because both you and I know that I'll break it." _He knows mythology._

"She doesn't know who we are." _Are you super spy agent hoping to take over the world?_

"Jean, stop it, we're not aliens," Aaron says in a sassy tone. _Thank you._

"You listen to me, Aaron D—"

"Jackson. Aaron Jackson. I don't want you using my middle name, _Emily,"_ Aaron says but he emphasize, "Emily."

Alison knows that they'll be arguing the rest of the time, she decides to go back to Jean's room. She goes to the small balcony and sits on one of the rocking chairs. She swings back and forth, and she's having fun with it like a little girl on a swing.

As she swings, she's lost in her thinking. She wonders how Jean has a connection with Jason. _If Jean knows Jason, she must know some inside info about the girl he loves…_

"Hey," a voice interrupts her thoughts. She turns and looks at Aaron. He has his beanie off which reveals wavy hair and some of the strands are curly.

"Have you looked at me the while time?" she asks him, embarrass.

"Yes, a couple of minutes." Alison nods and looks at the sky. "Do you mind if I sit with you?"

"No, I don't mind at all." Aaron sits next to Alison.

"Where's Jean?"

"She's having a Chinese conversation with Grandma Zhang," Aaron seriously says. He tries to stay serious, but breaks into laughter, which Alison joins. She wants to talk to him about his and Jean's conversation but she decides not to.

"Do you feel okay?"

"I feel fantastic."

"Really? Jean told me that you're a maniac."

"Liar." Her lips break into a smile.

"Yes."

"I heard my name!" Jean yells as she enters the room.

"Talk about the devil," Aaron whispers for Alison to hear. She laughs and looks at Aaron. Her dark blue orbs collides with his sea-green ones. She has a strong urge to lean in to get a closer look at his eyes since she sees some blue, but she resists it. Aaron continue to look at her. But Jean walks in. The step Jean walks in their eyes pull away.

"Aaron, move," she tells Aaron.

"Why?" Aaron asks.

"You can sit on my lap," Alison offers.

"She wouldn't do it," he challenges.

"I would," Jean says. She goes to Alison and sits on her lap. "I told you!"

"Someone has a voice," Alison says.

"Barely notice?" He raises an eyebrow.

"That's messed up," Jean says and playfully kicks him.

"I'm sorry."

"You don't mean it."

Aaron goes on his knees and says, "Forgive me."

"No," Jean refuses.

"I'm sorry."

"No."

Aaron grabs her hand and pulls her. Jean fall to the floor that causes Alison and her to have a fit of laughter. "I'm sorry."

"I hate you."

"I hate you too," Aaron agrees.

"You guys are so funny," Alison says.

Aaron raises an eyebrow to Alison and says "Please, she wouldn't be funny without me." Jean has enough of his talk so she gives him a nice punch in the arm.

"Really?" Aaron rubs his arm.

"Yeah, Waterboy."

"Deadgirl," he mutters.

"Deadgirl?" Alison repeats.

"The girl sucks at video games," he covers up.

"Which game?"

"Anything."

"I do not," Jean says.

"Zumba doesn't count, Jean!"

"Shut up." Jean covers her face from embarrassment.

"Is there a video game system here?" Alison asks.

"Yup," Aaron answers as he gets up from the floor and walks inside the room.

"How do you know where I have it?" Jean curiously asks him.

He arches an eyebrow in utter shock as he says "I've gone through your stuff long enough to know exactly where they are."

"What?" Jean shouts.

"He said that he's gone through your stuff long enough to know where the video games are," Alison says.

"I can't believe—" Jean says but is cut off.

"You suck at video games," he finishes.

"Bring it on!" Jean fiercely challenges. Her eyebrows scrunch together and her lips are slightly pouting.

"This will be fun," Alison says smiling, she can't wait to see this.

* * *

"Do not," Reyna says.

"Do too!" Luke pokes Reyna's stomach.

She flinches every time Luke pokes her because she's extremely ticklish. She then thinks back:

_Reyna was on the blue couch. Her right leg were spread on the long couch, and the other leg was draped on the hump of the couch. Her hands covered her olive-skinned face from a horrible headache she had._

_She heard the door open and she didn't bother to see who it was, she just wanted the door to close so she can return to the quiet peace in the apartment. "Are you awake?" Jason asked._

_Reyna remained silent, not bothering to reply. She suddenly felt Jason sit on the couch with his hand on her knee. "Rey?" By his tone, he sounded worried about her, she removed one of her hand and looked at him with her left eye. "Something wrong?"_

_No, everything is just dandy, she sarcastically wanted to say. "No. Why?"_

_"You seem off," he noticed._

_"Headache," she muttered._

_"Someone needs to be happy." He pokes Reyna's belly._

_"Stop," she told him, annoyed. She slapped his hand away._

_"Nah," Jason said._

_"Are you defying my orders?" she challenged him._

_Jason looked at her dead in the eye as if he was the doctor on the TV telling about to tell his patient 'I'm sorry, you have cancer,' and told her "We're not in the legion anymore."_

_"I know," she grumbled._

_"Mrs. Grumpy," he grumbled._

_Reyna removed her other song and looked at Jason, "So I assume that makes you Mr. Grumpy?"_

_Jason chuckled, and looked at her. He got up and laid himself on top of her, careful that he wasn't crushing her. "I guess so," he said, stroking her cheekbone with his index finger._

_"I remember you used to annoy me," Reyna remembered, smiling from the memory._

_"I remember how hard you pushed me away from you."_

_"But, I don't know why, your unexpectedly what I needed to make me happy."_

_"Same thing with me."_

_"Really?" Her cheeks flushed to a beautiful pale pink._

_"You push my buttons, but you make me happy." Jason didn't allow Reyna to respond since he crashed his lips on hers. She felt Jason smile within the kiss which caused butterflies to flutter inside her belly._

_He pulled away from her an went on a tickling rage on her. "Stop!" Reyna wheezed between laughs._

_"Never," Jason said, laughing at her. After half an hour of Jason tickling her, he stopped and looked at her. "How's that headache going?"_

_She realized that she didn't have a headache anymore. "I don't have any."_

_"Good." He gently pressed his nose against hers._

_"Your so stupid," she commented._

_"Not nice." He pouted. He placed his hands on her belly which caused Reyna to feel nervous._

_"What's wrong?"_

_"Nothing. It's just one day, your womb will carry a product of how we love each other."_

_"Or hormonal," she muttered._

_"I just wonder how long you'll make me wait?"_

_Reyna felt her muscle tense up, not from having a baby but raising the baby. "I know our backgrounds aren't that stable but we can make it," he said as if he knew exactly what she was thinking._

_"I don't want to talk about it," she quietly whispered to him._

_"Okay," he said. Judging by his tone, Reyna knew he wanted to push the topic further, but she simply wasn't going to let him push the topic more than it already is._

_"Right now is not the time," she assured him._

_"I know."_

_"May—"_

_"You talk to much."_

_"What?" she angrily fake asked him._

_"Shh," he said and tickled her._

"You okay, love?" Luke asks.

"Everything is fine," Reyna assures him. She bits her lower lip and remembers, "_Nothing. It's just one day, your womb will carry a product of how we love each other." _She wonders if Jason was either hoping or declaring she was going to one day impregnated by his child.

Jason used to be so annoying that she wanted to take out her dagger and throw it at him at the middle of his eyes. She later learned that all the ways he annoyed her, that made her unexpectedly happy. She realized that when he was take away from her, part of the Juno exchange program.

"Still going dress shopping?" Luke asks her.

"I'm still debating to go or not," she mutters, looking at the pond. She still wishes that she never got the letter.

* * *

Luke watches Reyna debate with herself to go to her reunion or not. He has known Reyna long enough that she'll call herself a coward and end up going. In the back of Luke mind, he wonders if Reyna gets back with Alison's dad, would things change between them. _Would she behave differently towards me? Or will we be closer? _

Reyna is one of the people, besides Alison, that has made him feel happy for these last couple of years. He rarely thinks about his past anymore and now, he looks forward to what today might bring. It brought me to hold her, he thinks.

He grabs Reyna's hand and gently caresses it as if it was a precious heirloom, which is for him. "Look at me," he gently whispers to her. Reyna continues to look at the pond, but he knows she hears him.

With his index finger, he grabs chin and gently moves her head to his direction. "What?" Her obsidian eyes are glassy, she's about to break into tears. Luke hates seeing a love one getting hurt, especially her.

"You shouldn't cry."

"I'm not crying," she retorts, wiping her eyes with the back of her other hand.

"Yeah, your eyes are sweating," he sarcastically says. Reyna's lips erupt to a small smile and Luke could've take an oath that he saw the heaven's above brighten. He kisses the hand he is holding and playfully smells it.

"Your such a pig," Reyna remarks.

Luke hears hey say dog so he says "Roof."

"It's oink," Reyna says between laughter. Her laughter sounds musical, yet calm as hearing waves crash down the sandy shore.

"Oh," his cheeks slightly brighten. "You ready?"

"For what?" she asks, confuse.

My attempt to make you happy, he wants to say, but bits his tongue not to. "Dress shopping."

She scrunches her nose as if she just served herself diarrhea delight smoothie. "No," she refuses.

"I'll call Silena," Luke practically sings with a knowing smirk on his face.

"Fine," she seriously agrees. He knows she hates shopping with Silena because Silena makes her try on frilly dresses and tries convincing her to buy the whole store.

"Fine." He gets up from the bench and lightly tugs her by the hand to follow. Reyna gets up and follows Luke's lead.

* * *

Jason watches a couple from a distance. The girl has dark hair, as her, in a braid, as her, but she has on clothing that Reyna wouldn't wear. The guy has blond sandy hair, tan skin, and what looks to Jason a blue scar on the side of his left aide of his jaw.

He watches the guy grab the girl's chin and turn her attention to him. They exchange a few words and leave hand-in-hand. For an unexplainable reason, Jason feels that his heart has just been shatter in a thousand pieces and that shard pierce his internal organs.

"Stalker," Bobby mutters next to him. Bobby is doing squats but Jason knows that he's checking out girls that are staring at the trio, mainly Jason.

"Wannabe womanizer," Dakota mutters, he receive a generous slap in the back of the head from Bobby.

"Let's continue," Jason encourages. Personally, he would've prefer to sit down and watch the couple. Sure he sounds like a stalker, but that what he wants to do.

"Okay, Praetor," Bobby teases. Jason looks at Bobby with annoyance and a frown on his features.

"I'm not praetor of Rome anymore," he reminds.

"Jace, just so you know, we're, including you, going to that reunion," Dakota tells him.

"Have you called Gwen to tell her to be your date?" Bobby asks, trying not to laugh.

"Got you," Dakota says, pointing at Bobby. "Knowing Gwen she knows I'm her automatic date, so I'll surprise her on the doorsteps."

"Such a romantic!" Bobby fake squeals from delight.

"You sound like a pig," Jason admits.

"Shut up."

* * *

"Why do you own video games?" Aaron asks Jean, dodging a bullet in the video game.

"You don't see me asking you, why are you so annoying?" Jean snaps, her eye train in the screen.

"Hey, no fighting or you two are going to the corner of shame," Alison playfully threaten. She feels the vibe of competition between the two, she feels half annoy and half amuse.

"Not fair!" Aaron yells out.

"If you're a bad boy you go to the corner," Alison says. She looks at Jean and sees her eyebrows are scrunch together as she bites her lower lip. Alison knows that look. "Go pee," she orders.

"You know the pee face?" Aaron asks, amuse.

"Hush," Jean hisses at Alison.

"I'm being honest," Alison says. She takes the controller from Jean and begins to play. The game she's playing with Aaron is _Call of Duty _and she does know how to play the game since she has played with Luke in the past.

"I do not have a pee face," Jean pouts.

"Just like I don't have a constipated face," Aaron blurts out, covering his mouth as he realizes what he said.

"I have one word for you buddy: prunes. Eat prunes." Alison smiles as Jean laughs.

"I didn't say that." Aaron's cheeks are pink from embarrassment.

"Nice blush," Jean calls him out.

First, it was Jean who has to pee now Alison seriously has to pee. "Since we're making confessions, can I make a confession? I have to pee."

"Did I really have to know that?" Jean asks.

Alison shrugs. "Jean we tell each other about a lot of things."

"Woah!" Aaron cuts in. "I don't want to learn about that." He pauses the game and covers his ears. Jean and Alison look at each other with a knowing smirk on their faces. "Go for it," Jean mouths to Alison.

She nods and says "Jean, when was your period?"

"Mmm," Jean fakely says, touching the sides of her chin with her index and thumb finger, "I'm actually on it," she declares.

"Stop," he pleads.

"I am too!" Alison yells out.

"Up top." Jean holds up her hand for a high-five, Alison gladly takes that high-five.

"I still have to pee," she tells her.

"Down the hall," Jean replies.

"I'll tell you how my quest goes later," Alison says, getting up and walking to the door. She turns and sees that Aaron and Jean have this dumbfounded look on their faces. "Is my butt that amazing?" she sarcastically asks. She opens the door and walks out.

* * *

"I would be totally jealous if she ever can take a quest," Aaron declares.

"She was just joking," Jean chides.

Aaron looks at the floor, probably from embarrassment on what he's going to ask, and asks, "Are you actually on your—"

"Period," she cuts him off. "No. Want to know when?" Of course she isn't going to tell him when her period was, but he likes pushing his buttons since he pushes hers, hard.

"Do you think she's a demigod?" Aaron asks.

"What?" It has never cross Jean's mind to think that _Alison_ her _best friend _is a demigod. "No."

"She looks at lot like Thalia," he reminds.

"Yeah, but that can be just a coincidence," she practically pleads. She doesn't want Alison to go through the "demigod" life because she already has it tough with Mackenzie and more or less Alexis.

"So you're telling me that you weren't attracted to her because she looked like Thalia?" Aaron challenges.

Jean's mouth is dry as she squeaks, "Yes." It's true, Alison has a tough personality that she always has seen in Thalia.

"Her eyes are really blue."

Jean is taken back by Aaron's comment. "You've seen here eyes."

Aaron fluster as he says "Of course. It's sort of obvious. She also has small specks that look black."

Okay, this is getting weird, Jean thinks. "What happened?" she demands, scrunching eyebrows.

"Nothing," he quickly replies.

"Follow the rules. I don't want her finding out about us demigods."

"Well you and I come from parents who are demigods," Aaron points out.

"We still know about the demigod world right?"

"Yes."

"Then shut up about it."

* * *

Alison goes down the hall, on the search for a bathroom. She past an open door, but walks backward to the door. The room is large that has a large bed, Chinese pictures with Chinese lettering on them, white hand-painted walls, and a small coffee table with a tea set out and two black pillows on both sides of the table. "Come in," she hears. Alison realizes that on one of those pillows, Grandma Zhang is sitting down with a cup in her hand.

On the command, she enters the room and sits on the opposite side of Grandma Zhang. Grandma Zhang grabs her white porcelain and red tea-pot, and hold it up. Alison stares at Grandma Zhang from confusion but quickly realizes that Grandma Zhang wants to serve her tea, she grabs a tea-cup and Grandma Zhang serves her. After she serves Alison, Alison taps her fingers against the tea-cup, saying thank you. She learn that Chinese people say thank you in this particular way because she has read about, when Jean told her for the first time that she's part Chinese, and the number of Jackie Chan movies she has seen.

"I never knew you knew that accustom," Grandma Zhang says in awe.

"I know some," Alison says. Her dark blue eye meets her dark black eyes. Her eyes remind Alison of her mom, but these eyes are full of wisdom, knowledge, and a string aura on the way she keeps herself. If another person is to stare at her eyes, they'll feel frighten and turn away, but Alison isn't afraid to stare back. She's seen those eyes with her mother, and how her mom can be really strict at times.

"Interesting," she sips her tea-cup. "Tell me, child, what kind of tea are we drinking?" Alison looks down on her cup and sees green leaves. She takes a small sip and automatically knows what it is.

"Green tea."

"A bit obvious for the leaves, don't you think?"

Alison considers her comment for a second. "On the contrary, you could've added a color dye in the tea and someone could've mistaken it for another type of tea."

"Good point," Grandma Zhang smiles. From seeing Grandma Zhang smile, Alison smiles.

* * *

"Would you like some more tea?" Alison politely asks.

Mrs. Zhang looks at her tea-cup to it half empty. "No," she says.

"Your cup is half empty," Alison insists.

"Yes," she replies.

Alison grabs the tea-pot and serves Mrs. Zhang tea. She's polite, she assumes. "Has anyone told you that you have a lovely set of eyes?" Mrs. Zhang comments.

"Does now count?"

She can't help but smile once more about the girl. Mrs. Zhang can't help but notice her strong aura and how the child hold herself high, but not in an arrogant way. "Yes."

"Then yes."

Mrs. Zhang and Alison have small talk about the weather, Alison asks questions about the Chinese culture, and books. The more Mrs. Zhang gets to know her, the more she sees Emily in her and Reyna, a former praetor of Rome. Both Emily and Reyna have a similarity: they were willing to do anything to protect others. Yes the way they protect people were different, but they did protect with their lives.

* * *

Reyna and Luke walk into the mall, which Reyna dreads. "I have a dress," she tells him.

"I'm not so fond of the shopping idea, but you need something to wear," Luke insists.

"I know," she groans.

"I thought Reyna always kept herself in a royal wear with everything tight and neat."

"I do, but dresses are something I haven't worn one in a while."

"You've only worn skirts." The mall are three stories high, white tile floors, expensive shops, and an arch style tint light blue glass window for the roof.

"This is Silena's paradise," Reyna mutters.

"Come on," Luke tells her. They walk to a small shop where flowy orange, purple skin-tight, and other types of dress are on display. Reyna can't help but feel hesitant to enter the store. She's about to go shopping with a guy. She didn't have a problem but the last time she did it was with Jason:

_"I'm going to take you tonight," Jason declared._

_"I don't want to," Reyna groaned from the couch, a bowl of ice cream in her hands._

_"Yup. My rule: you and I go dress shopping." Jason ran to her and carried bridal style and walked out of the apartment with Reyna hitting him on the chest to let her go._

_"Put me down!" she yelled._

_"Will you run?" he questioned her. His eyes met hers and she knew that if she ran, Jason would run after her._

_"No," she said, defeated._

_"Good," he places her down and tightly grips her hand._

_"Wait! Your going shopping with me?"_

_"Yeah," he said, concerned._

_"Your going to be with me when I try on dresses?"_

_"Yeah," he repeats._

_She felt her cheeks burn and she looked at the paved road. "Are you taking me just to check me out in dresses?" She looked up at Jason and saw a knowing smirk on his face; Reyna wanted to slap him._

_"I guess," he said._

_Time for payback, she thought. "We'll you're trying on monkey suits," she declared. She knew how much Jason hated suits, and that was the perfect way to irritate him._

_"No," he defiantly said._

_"We'll see about that," she quickly muttered, knowing things had to go her way or no show. _

"Alright," she agreed. She has to resist the urge to laugh because she remembers that she made Jason try on the most ugliest suits in the racks, but he still managed to look handsome. She then felt sad because those were the bright days she had with Jason, before the incident.

She entered the shop.

* * *

Andrew Griffin is at the mall with his nephew, Nick Williams. He and his nephew were just walking together and laughing as they talk about nonsense.

"How are things with little Alison?" Andrew questions Nick.

Nick stops laughing and turns his face to avoid looking at his uncle. Andrew raises a knowing eyebrow. "I don't know what you're talking about?" Nick innocently says.

"How are things with Mackenzie?"

"It's okay," he says, with no effort.

Andrew bites his lower lip his eyes meet Nick's. He remembers how small Nick was when Edward came to his door and told him that he can't raise Nick on his own because he has other things and dreams on being a director to pursue. Nick was barely a two month old baby, so innocent and yet so delicate:

_The rain was pouring down hard against the glass window where Andrew was looking out. He wore nothing but a dark blue with a black band boxers that hung on his bottom half. He was in his room, he felt miserable, unhappy, and useless to the world._

_The previous night he was at a bar and met a girl, he brought her home and shagged her. The girl now laid on his bed, using all the space and none for him which was why he stood at the window._

_He heard mumbles and he turned to see the blonde toss and turn in her sleep. To be frank, the girl was getting on his nerves since she slapped him numerous of times in her sleep. He can't wait for her to wake up and get her a cab so he can kick her out of his house._

_He continued to stare out the window and saw a black Cadillac park at the front of his house. Who the blazing is that? he thought. A man dressed in black got out if the driver's seat and went to the passenger's seat and pulled out a baby's carrier._

_"Don't let it be like in the movies when people leave babies in stranger's doorsteps," he worried. In only in his boxers, he fled downstairs and opened the door where he saw the man was Edmund. "What the barnacles are you doing here?" Andrew demanded._

_Edmund's usual tan skin paled. That was when Andrew noticed the bloodshot blue eyes, and the unkept dark brown hair. "I can't do it," his voice trembled._

_"What are you talking about?" Andrew asked, debating to either yell at his brother or call him stupid and slam the door on his face. "Come in," he decided._

_Edmund walked into the large living room. The living room had dark wood floor, leaf-green colored walls, and white couches and patterned bankers draped over them. Andrew sat on the couch and Edmund sat on the opposite of him._

_"What do you want?" he asked. Andrew had no intention to sound harsh, but he apparently did since Edmund flinched._

_"I can't do it," Edmund repeated._

_"Do what? Is this little Nicholas?" Andrew sat up and grabbed the yellow carrier. A yellow duck blanket draped the carrier so Andrew took off the blanket. Andrew saw an adorable baby sleeping that had chocolate-brown hair and pout lips as if he was having a bad dream._

_"I want to pursue other things," Edmund said._

_"Good for you," Andrew congratulated._

_"But I can't do it if little Nicholas is here."_

_Andrew mossy green eyes met Edmund's as he said "What exactly are you saying?"_

_"I want you to raise—"_

_"What?" he hissed, he didn't want to shout to avoid awakening the baby._

_"I can't be a single parent," Edmund tried to reason._

_"What do you want to do about it?"_

_"I'm leaving the child with you."_

_"Me?" Andrew looks around, making sure he was purely talking to him. "I didn't have the child in the first place."_

_"Either you take the child or I'm dropping him off the adoption center," Edmund threatens. Andrew was dumbfounded by Edmund's threat._

_"Fine," Andrew agreed._

_"Thank you, I'll—"_

_Andrew held up his hand for he can speak. "You will sign all document papers saying you give up guardianship of him, I will not force the child to have contact with you because it is clear you are unfit to be parent."_

_"Very well," Edmund agreed, his head down from how ashamed he felt._

_"Why can't mum have him?" Andrew redirected his eyes on the sleeping child._

_Edmund sighed, probably expecting the question to be asked sooner or later. "His mother left."_

_Coincidence, he thought. "Oh," was all Andrew could say._

_"I have to go. I have a plane to catch."_

_"I still want those—"_

_Edmund pulled out a stack of papers from under his black long coat and handed it to his brother. "The documents are signed. All you need to do is sign them and you are the guardian." Edmund walked to the door and was about to leave when Andrew called him._

_"Ed, are you going to say goodbye to him?"_

_"It's painful as it already is," Edmund said. Without another word, he walked out, into the pouring rain._

_The child began to cry and it was then that Andrew realized to what he signed up for. He grabbed the child and held him in his arms as he patted Nicholas' back and quietly hummed until the child quieted down._

_"Go to sleep, Nick. You're safe with me, you'll always be safe," he whispered. Andrew could've sworn when he laid the child back to his carrier, Nicholas nodded and opened his light blue eyes for the first time._

_"What a cute baby," the blonde cooed, who had to be upstairs sleeping._

_"Get out," Andrew darkly said._

_"What?" the blonde asked, making sure she heard correctly._

_"Out."_

_"The child is yours isn't he!"_

_"Yes, he is my child." He wanted her out._

_The blonde gathered her belongings and slammed the front door as hard as she could._

"Don't lie to me," Andrew taunts, smiling.

"I'm serious," Nick assures.

"Does she have a boyfriend?"

"No," Nick quickly replies.

"How did you know who exactly I was referring to?"

"Uncle," Nick groans.

"Nick," Andrew groans back. The two of them laugh and change the subject.

Up ahead, he sees Reyna in front of a shop with Luke. Why is Luke with her? he thinks.

"Jealous?" Nick challenges.

"Hush," Andrew tells him. Yes, Nick is probably the best thing that ever happen to his life because he isn't completely alone, but the kid can be a real pain in the arse sometimes. "Come on," he tells Nick once Reyna has enter inside.

* * *

Aaron is out of his mind playing video games. He notice that Alison is taking a _long_ time getting back from the bathroom.

"I'm going outside, I'll be back," he tells Jean and gets up. He walks out and hears laughter from down the hall. He walks to noise and finds Grandma Zhang and Alison together. Weird combo, he thinks.

"What are you guys doing?" Aaron asks, uncomfortable at the door entrance.

"I'm having a chat with Mrs. Zhang," Alison speaks up.

"Didn't you have to go to the bathroom?"

"Yeah," she remembers. "I'll be back," she tells Grandma Zhang. After Alison leaves, he turns his attention to Grandma Zhang.

"Have you taken a liking to her?" Grandma Zhang asks, almost teasing.

"What are you talking about?"

"She's a strong independent woman and both you and I can't deny that she is mighty pretty," she adds on.

Aaron knows that he can't deny the pretty part, and the independent part since he knows it's true. "I don't like her."

"You don't?" she challenges, her eyes saying that he's lying.

"Don't tease me," he tells her. Ever since Aaron was small, Grandma Zhang would try making his life miserable almost every time he came to visit.

"I'm just saying: you like the girl," Grandma Zhang says.

You want the big guns? I'll show you the big guns! "Don't tease me, Cousin Zhang." Aaron can almost swear that he sees Grandma Zhang eyes almost explode out if their eye sockets.

"Get out of here, Waterboy," she tells him.

"Now I know where Jean got the tongue," Aaron says, chuckling. He turns and leaves, but is hit by a slipper that smacks him in the back of the head. "Ouch!" He rubs his head.

"That was well deserved," Grandma Zhang says.

Aaron picks up the white slipper and hold it up to Grandma Zhang as he tell her "Lady, you ain't getting this back until later," he sassily says, snapping his fingers in a Z, and leave Grandma Zhang to curse at him in Chinese.

* * *

Reyna is with Luke looking at dresses. "This is the first time I go dress shopping," Luke confesses.

"Yippee," she sarcastically says.

"Can I help you?" a female asks in a heavy Irish accent.

Reyna turns and sees a tall woman with strawberry blonde hair and light blue eyes. She has on a light pink V-neck, long-sleeve dress that falls to her knees with a gray ribbon tie around her waist. "Yes," Luke speaks up. Reyna glares at him, shooting daggers but Luke ignores her stares. "I'm looking for a dress," he says and points at Reyna.

"Yes," her blue eyes examines Reyna from head to toe. "You have a beautiful wife," she compliments. Reyna feels the blood rush out of her face.

"No, he—"

Reyna doesn't even has a chance to finish since a male says from behind calls out to her, "Reyna." Reyna turns around and sees Andrew with Nick. Andrew has on light blue jeans and a white polo shirt that show his well define muscles while Nick has on dark blue jeans and a red V-neck shirt under his light gray long-sleeve button down shirt.

"It's nice to see you again," Nick politely says.

"Same here," Reyna replies. She returns her attention to Andrew and asks, "What are you doing here?"

"I saw you looking hesitant in front of the store a while ago, so I decided to come," Andrew answers.

"We have it all under control," Luke says. Reyna looks at Luke and Luke looks at her and give him a _What?_ expression.

"What is the occasion?" Andrew asks, ignoring Luke.

"It's for a reunion," Reyna says, pulling a strand of hair behind her ear.

"That sounds like fun," he replies.

Nick looks around the shop and finally asks: "Where is Alison?"

"Alison is at Jean's house. You do know Jean right?" Reyna replies.

"Which dress do you search for?" the store assistant ask.

"I don't know which dress I search for," Reyna admits to her.

The store clerk smiles and her blue eyes light up. "Come, we will look for the perfect gown," she tell Reyna, gently steering her away.

"Will the other two stay?" she asks. Reyna knows exactly who she means: Nick and Andrew.

"I feel uncomfortable shopping with one guy but another guy is simply pushing it," Reyna admits to her.

"The more opinions the merrier," the store clerk replies.

"You think I should do it?" Reyna asks for her opinion. Honestly, Reyna doesn't know what to do to this point.

"Your choice," the store clerk says selecting gowns and walks to the dressing room to leave Reyna to pick her answer.

She turns and looks at Luke and Andrew giving each other a staring contest. Boy will be boys, she thinks. ""Luke, come. Andrew, you and Nick are welcome to stay. Nick, I know you might get bored with this but with your uncle's permission you can call Alison and ask if she can hangout with you."

"Can I?" Nick turns to his uncle.

"Sure," Andrew agrees.

"Are you ready to try on dresses?" the store clerk returns, looking at Reyna.

Reyna gulps. "Ready as I'll ever be," she admits.

"Come," she says. Reyna ahead of the store clerk and the store clerk puts her hands on Reyna's shoulders and whispers, "You're so lucky."

The thing is, Reyna isn't sure if she feels lucky at all.

* * *

Alison goes back to Jean's room after her bathroom trip. "You took long," Jean complains.

"Sorry. I was talking to grandmother."

"Did she insult you, if she did—"

"No," she interrupts. Jean gives Alison an odd look which Alison doesn't understand why. "What? Do I have a booger coming out of my nose?" She covers her nose.

"No," Jean says between laughs. "It's just that it's weird for my grandma to not insult people since she usually does. She really likes you then."

"Your dad seriously has patience with her," Alison says in awe.

"I know. But she never is snappy with my mom."

"Isn't it supposed to be the opposite?" Alison sits on the beanbag next to Jean.

"My grandma is not normal." Aaron walks in the room. "Neither is he."

"Are you talking about me being the smart one?" Aaron teases. Alison notice the white slipper in his hand and she can't help but smile and wonder to herself on how he obtain Grandma Zhang's slipper.

"Were you playing Cinderella with Grandma Zhang?" Alison teases, doing Jean a favor.

"What?" He sounds confuse.

"The shoe," she points at the shoe.

"Oh," he gently throws the shoe at Alison, "I dont know what your talking about."

Alison catches the slipper and offers the sliiper to Jean as she says "I dare you to smell it."

"Yuck!" Jean sticks her tongue out. Her phone rings and Alison has a gut feeling it's her mom and already thinking it's time to go when she's just having fun. Alison pats herself down on the search fro her phone but can't find it. "Up," Jean tell her. When Alison obeys, Jean sticks her hand from Alison's back pocket and takes out the phone.

"Jean your fast like Stoll brothers," Aaron says. Jean ignores him and looks at the screen of Alison's ohone.

"It's him," she squeals.

"Him?" Aaron asks, confuse.

"Let me answer it," Alison holds out her hand and Jean gives it to her.

"Hello?" Alison answers.

"Hey, Alice," Nick says.

"What's up?" Alison goes to the balcony and Jean follows. Alison is going to shut the balcony door but Jean buts in and refuses.

"Nothing. I'm just hanging out with my uncle and I saw your mom out with Luke," he tells her.

"Where?"

"At the mall."

"Really," she laughs. "My mom isn't the shopping type."

"I can tell."

"So you just called to give me the 101 about my mom's whereabouts?"

"No, I wanted to ask if I can stop by and hangout with you for a while."

"Well," she hesitates, "I'm with Jean but I'm sure I can ask her."

"Okay," he says.

Alison covers the receiver and tells Jean "Can he come over?"

"I'll type in the address," Jean says in a cool tone, making Alison wanting to laugh.

"She says yeah," Alison tells Nick.

"Okay."

"I'll text you the address."

"Sure. I can't wait to see you."

She looks at Jean's flowers and feels her cheeks slightly heat up. Why am I acting this way? Hormones? "The quicker you come, the quicker we can see each other," she assures him.

"See you soon."

"Okay."

"Bye."

"Bye." Alison hangs up and gives her phone to Jean so she can type in the address.

"He's coming over?"

"Yes, so please don't squeal to death."

Jean becomes serious and says "Like this?"

"No, you sound like the Terminator!" Alison laughs.

The two girls walk together back inside and find Aaron laying down on Jean's bed. "What happened?" he asks.

"A friend is coming over," Alison answers.

"More like a friend to Alison," Jean says.

Alison lightly hip bumps her and tells her to shut up. "He's just a friend."

"A guy?" Aaron asks.

"Yeah," Alison answers.

"Okay." His light blue eyes turn into slight shade to a darker blue. Is he jealous, Alison thinks. She has no time to ask since Jean attacks her with a pillow.

"Pillow fight!" Jean yells. Alison grabs a pillow and starts hitting Jean but the pillow accidentally hits Aaron and the room grows silent.

Aaron smiles and throws pillows at the girls as the girls try to protect themselves.

Alison thought she was going to have a normal time hanging out with Jean but it turns out to be the opposite with Aaron here. Aaron isn't the person she expects him to be at first glance, and he turn out to be a joker, playful, and sarcastic. She likes that.

She hits Aaron in the face with the pillow and Aaron gladly returns the favor. "Sorry princess," he sarcastically says and runs out of the room.

"I have water guns," Jean offers.

"Let's go on a manhunt," Alison dramatically says, Jean laughs in the background.

* * *

**I'm so sorry I haven't updated. I hope this chapter made up for it!**

**I hope you like Aaron. You guys know who his parentage is! Do you like him? I try to combine a bit of Annabeth's and Percy's personality to mold it into one unique one. One last note: his eye color changes and thats why they are sometimes blue, green or greenish-blueish.**


	14. Chapter 14

**The chapter you all waited!**

* * *

_"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened."_

_-Dr. Seuss _

* * *

Alison and Jean are on a manhunt. Aaron is the target of this such event, but no one can find him.

"Where can he be?" Alison turns to Jean.

She puts on her fake thinking cap on and thinks. "If you were Aaron, where were you be at?" she asks Alison.

"I'd be in the bathroom and experiencing the experience of not peeing on yourself when you go up," Alison confesses.

Jean laughs, "I'd be checking us out from a distance and see how we actually look like."

"Great," she playfully points her gun at her.

"How about the backyard?" Jean suggests.

"Lead the way." Jean walks pasts the large kitchen with its tile floors and granite countertops, and to the spring door that leads to the backyard. The backyard is large with healthy looking green grass, bushes of many types of flowers, a tree with a swing tire, and a medium size swimming pool.

"Nice," Alison says in awe.

"Thanks," Jean smiles.

Suddenly, something wet hits Alison's back and she turns to find Aaron with a bucket full of water balloons in his hand. "You wouldn't," she says, taking a step back.

"Try me," he devilishly says, grinning widely.

"Aaron, my hair is gonna frizz up and I don't want Afro hair," Jean warns.

"Jean, I've seen your hair when it dries, it's not that fluffy," Aaron says, not resiisting the urge to roll his eyes.

"Okay, drop the bucket," Alison cautiously says.

"Never!" he shouts. Aaron takes a yellow and red water balloon and throws thems at the girls, while the girls squirt their guns.

"I'm hit!" Alison shrieks. She dramatically tumbles to the floor, looking like a dying person.

"Alice!" Jean acts. "Don't leave me," she fake cries, kneeling next to her.

"I'm so sorry," Aaron says, dropping his bucket and walks to the girls. He takes Alison hands which causes Alison to feel uneasy, but in a good way, and puts it over his chest. "I should've never gone down that road that I've taken," he says in a British accent, looking at the sky.

Alison fake coughs and in a little voice she says, "At least you know that next time you shall not do the same thing."

"Shall?" Aaron asks, erupting into laughter.

"You shall not insult her," Jean smacks his arm.

"I shall have a bruise that'll take an awfully long time to perish," Aaron pouts.

"Four score and seven years ago!" Alison buts in.

"I don't want to hear your random history speeches," Jean says.

"Better than science," Alison rolls her eyes.

"Mrs. Sweeney doesn't help," she seriously says.

Alison's phone rings and she answers it.

"Hello?" she says.

"I'm on the front porch," Nick says on the other line.

"I'll be there," she hangs up.

"He—"

"I got it," Jean says, getting up and leaves to answer the door.

"Jean surprises me at times," Aaron tell her, flopping on the floor next to her.

"Jean will always be Jean," she tells him.

"Amen."

* * *

Jean walks to the front door and opens it to find Nick. Nick looks rather cute with his dark blue jeans and a red V-neck shirt under his light gray long-sleeve button down shirt.

"Hey," she greets.

"Hi, Jean," he replies.

"Come in." She opens the door wider and Nick walks in. "Me and Alison were outside in my backyard playing."

Nick turns to her and smiles. "That explains why you're wet."

"Cheeky," she comments and walks ahead of him to the backyard. Jean can't believe what she sees before her eyes.

* * *

Luke and Andrew are having a stare-down while Reyna is changing into a dress.

"Did you stalk us?" Luke speaks first.

"No, I did not stalk you two. Why on earth would I stalk you?" Andrew replies.

"Many told me I'm a very 'seductive' kind of person," he imitates Andrew.

Andrew frowns from Luke's imitations. "Do girls find that scar hot?" he tightly snaps. It's true what Andrew says since Luke does have a scar on his left cheek whose color is blue.

"I can hear you guys," Reyna says from her dressing room.

"Sorry," the both apologize.

"I have my eyes on you, Griffin," Luke says, doing the 'I'm watching you' gesture.

"Right back at you, Castellan," Andrew smirks.

The two boys can't stand each other, but they're doing a special person the favor; they would stand in the same room forever if they have to.

* * *

Reyna feels extremely uncomfortable in the dress she's in. She has on a long dark silk strapless dress, and a thin belt ties around her small waist.

"Very nice," the store clerk comments.

"Thank you," she thanks. Though Reyna is grateful for that comment, she feels that she isn't herself. She has two guys who are waiting for her to show off a dress, but she doesn't want to come out. Reyna has never been the type of girl who would dress her hair or do her make-up; she's the kind of girl that works all day.

She remembers:

_"Reyna, I'm not getting any younger," Jason complained from outside._

_"Be patient," she reminded. She and Jason were at a small shop where Reyna was dress shopping for a dress. Reyna loathed this task but she had to pick a dress for Fortuna._

_"Okay," he replies._

_Reyna had on a knee-high chocolate-brown silk dress under light brown lace. She was hesitant to get out and show Jason how the dress looked like._

_"You'll look fine," Jason assured her._

_With that, Reyna opened her door and walked out. Jason's mouth dropped and he look dumbstruck. "Is it that horrible?"_

_"You look lovely," Jason kindly said._

_"It hugs me everywhere," she complained._

_"In a good way," his eyes wandered to her figure. Reyna wished she had a dagger so she could throw it at his forehead._

_"You're such a guy."_

_"If you've noticed, I am a guy," he clarified._

_"Really?" she sarcastically said._

_"You look lovely by the way," he reminded, smiling like a fool._

_Reyna cocked her left eyebrow and smirked. "Were you and Percy exchanging advice the other day?" she politely asked, clearly already knowing the answer. Percy and Annabeth one day decided to drop by at New Rome to visit Jason and Reyna. Reyna and Annabeth were in the kitchen talking about the mathematics in the making of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, while they heard a whispering discussion between Jason and Percy on how to avoid getting in trouble with their girlfriends._

_"What are you talking about?" His cheeks flushed light pink._

_"Don't lie to me, Grace," her voice stern._

_"Sorry," he muttered._

_"I partially forgive you," she answered._

Reyna sometimes finds it hard to believe that after all these years, she still thinks about him. Is he married? Does he have children? There's a question that painfully burns the back of her mind—does he still love her?

Each memory that she thinks back on makes her heart ache and blink away tears. She sometimes hates herself by acting weak, but she can't help it. He has always been a weak spot for her. He made her open up and be more open. He knows all her flaws and he accepted her for that, when they were together.

But she still feels happy, even though of her heartache. She's just happy that she got the chance to feel loved for the first time. Sure Hylla loves her and all, but the love Jason gave her and Hylla are completely different.

"Ready?" the salesclerk interrupts her thinking.

"Yes," she nods.

"Okay," she replies.

Reyna opens the door and walks out.

* * *

"Are you nervous?" Bobby asks. Jason is selecting a suit that he'll wear for tonight, and Bobby and Dakota are being the critics.

"Yes," he admits.

"Do you think she'll show up?" Dakota asks. He hates being the one with bad news, but he has to because anything can happen tonight.

"I don't know," he wistfully says.

"We know that she made a life for herself because she can't sit still," Bobby offers.

"She won't know you're a loser since you're Dr. Grace," Dakota adds. When Reyna left, he completed his medical degree to be anesthesiologist. Anesthesiologis is someone who is in the surgery room—responsible for administrating anesthesia. He chose this path because he has the calm aura to calm others, and the patients relaxes patients to enter surgery. He once considered being a brain surgeon, but was bored of the classes and lasted only a semester with his classes.

"Probably a nerd," Jason mutters.

"True," Bobby offers his words of encouragement, before Dakota chides him.

"Whatever happens, happens," Dakota says.

"I know," Jason says.

My heart breaks for him, Bobby and Dakota think at the same time.

* * *

Alison and Aaron are together, laughing, in the pool. She's laughing because Aaron is trying to impress her on how much time he can be underwater and how much of an epic fail he is since he looks like he's having a heart attack when he comes up to breath air.

"You're such a Michael Phelps in the water," she sarcastically says, rolling her eyes.

"Hush, it's not like your Missy Franklin in the water," he sarcastically replies back.

"I'm not bad at gymnastics," she shrugs.

"Really?" he asks, intrigue. It's true that Alison one time took gymnastics, but she was 4 and stopped when she was 11 since she was sick of it.

"Yeah."

"Prove it," he challenges, his blue eyes turn to a shade of light green.

"Here?" she nervously asks, pointing to the water she's in.

"Why not?" Aaron curiously asks.

"No," she refuses.

"For me?" he pleads, swimming to her so they're face-to-face.

"Nice try, but I still refuse," she says, swimming against the cement wall of the pool.

"Please?" he once again pleads. He swims closer to her and their faces are inches apart.

"No," she repeats, avoiding to meet his eyes.

"I'm gonna tickle you," he threatens.

"You wouldn't," she challenges. "I know—" Aaron cuts her off by tickling her belly, and she hysterically laughs. "I'm ticklish," she wheezes. She laughs so much that she goes underwater and is finding it hard to swim back up. Her lungs are begging to breath air, but it's like if the water is pulling her down.

Aaron looks underwater and sees that she can't get up to the surface. He concentrates on the water and the water automatically, and gently, pushes Alison to the surface. When Alison is halfway to the surface, Aaron dives in, and wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her up.

They reach the surface and Alison breaths the precious air in her lungs. Her arms are tightly wrap around Aaron's neck, but she can care less about it now. She lays her head against his shoulder and whispers, "Thank you."

"I'm just glad you're okay," he whispers back, patting her back. She has no idea how Aaron is still maintaining them up without drowning into the water, but she's glad he can do whatever he's doing.

"What's going on?" Jean nearly shouts, standing at the rim of the pool with Nick behind her. Alison looks at Nick and sees slight hurt in his eyes. Nothing happened, she wants to say but can't summon the words to do so.

"She nearly drowned," Aaron explains, hugging Alison more tightly to him.

"I'm so sorry," Jean apologizes, she walks to them. "Ali, give me your hand," holding her hand out. Alison tries reaching for it but her arms are too short to reach them.

"I'll swim her—" Aaron says.

"Take my hand," Nick says, his hand out. Alison reaches his hand and Nick carries her out of the pool. "Are you okay?" he asks, concern. His hands lay on the both of Alison's pale cheeks while he looks at her.

"I'm just cold," she begins to tremble. A cool gush of winds runs in the air which doesn't help Alison at all.

"Take her in," Jean instructs. Nick nods, and laces his hand through hers and leads her inside.

They're soon in the kitchen, Aaron and Jean trailing behind.

"Get in the shower," Jean tells Alison. She grab her best friend's hand, and Nick releases his hand and Alison walks upstairs. "I'm worried about you," Jean says.

"I have nothing to wear," Alison realizes.

"I'll leave clothes in my room and I'll keep the boys downstairs until you're ready to come down," she says.

"Thanks."

Jean smiles and tightly hugs Alison, not caring that she's wet. "Hurry," she tells her.

With that, Alison enters the bathroom and takes a shower.

* * *

Reyna walks out, and sees Luke's and Andrew's mouth hang open. "I can't believe I said it was okay for you guys to come with me," she mutters.

"You look very nice," Andrew comments.

"You can have dates that look nicer than me," she confesses.

"But those girls are not you," he replies. Reyna resists the urge for blood to rush to her cheeks.

"You look breathtaking," Luke compliments, smiling.

"Thank you," Reyna thanks.

"You never did explain why you need a dress," Andrew realizes.

"It's for a reunion," she whispers.

"High school?"

"I guess you can say that."

"So you're going alone?"

It hits her that she has no one to go with. She knows that she'll want someone to lean on. Reyna knows if she asks one of her friends, she'll have to tell the person the secret that she's a demigod.

"I don't know yet," she confesses.

"Go try on more dresses," Luke tells her.

She nods and goes back into the dressing room, lost in her thinking.

* * *

Aaron and Nick awkwardly sit on the couches from across each other. Nick can't help but feel a little hurt on what he saw earlier when Aaron and Alison had their arms around each other.

He clears his throat and sits up. "What's your name?" Nick asks.

"Aaron Jackson," Aaron politely holds out his hand.

"Nick Williams," he firmly shakes Aaron's hand.

"The girls invited you here?" Aaron curiously asks.

"I asked Alison if we could hang out, and she said that it was okay that I'd stop by here."

"I just hopes she's okay."

"What happened?" his eyes narrow.

"Jean went to answer the door since you arrived, Alison and I were in the backyard. We messed around and fell into the pool. I tickled her, and she lost her concentration in the swimming and went down into the water. She struggled to get to the surface and I went underwater to grab her," Aaron explains. Nick examines Aaron's clothing and sees that his clothes are dry.

"You're clothes are dry," Nick points out.

"Water eventually dries," Aaron nervously says.

"Yes, but it's not physically possible for you to dry up that quickly—"

"Aaron, kitchen now," Jean orders, walking down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Is Alice fine?" Nick calls out to Jean.

"Alice?" Aaron asks, off guard.

"I call her that," he shrugs. Aaron nods and walks to the kitchen.

Is he hiding something? Nick asks himself.

* * *

"I just hope Alison isn't traumatized," Jean quietly hisses.

"She's not," he holds his hands up. "The water pushed her up."

"Does she know that you did that? You're not supposed to do that around a mortal." She nearly yanks her hair out.

"Jean, the water pushed her up and it wasn't like I made the water into a whirlpool; I think you forgot about the mist if I were to do that," Aaron answers.

"I don't want you to that."

"Why not? Rachel seee through the mist," he reasons.

"Because Rachel had a role to play which was to become an oracle at Camp Half-Blood."

"It's better than have that teddy bear slayer of Octavian," he snorts.

"Suddenly passing out seem cool, huh?" Jean sarcastically says.

"Whatever."

* * *

Alison comes downstairs, wearing the clothes Jean left in her room. She has on dark blue pants, a white spaghetti strap top under an army cardigan that has big buttons, and red sandals. Alison isn't comfortable with this type of clothing, but she didn't want to raid through Jean's closet.

"Hey," Nick says.

Alison smiles and plops herself next to him. "Where did Jean and Aaron go?" she asks.

"They're arguing in the kitchen," he says.

"Cool."

Nick laughs. "You seem cool with it."

Jean and Aaron walk in and sit on the couch opposite of them. "You look nice," Jean says, smirking.

"Thank you," she smiles. "I would've raided your closet, but I wasn't sure what I was gonna find," shielding her eyes.

"Are you guys dating?" Aaron speaks up.

"No," she and Nick reply.

"I thought you were," Aaron says, looking slightly jealous. Is he? she wonders.

"No," Alison repeats.

"I thought you were by how close you guys are sitting," he says. Alison realizes what he means when she notices her's and Nick's arms are touching.

"There's nothing wrong with that," Nick says. "I thought she had a boyfriend by the way you had your arms around her in the pool," referring to when Aaron and Alison were in the pool.

"Okay!" Jean buts in, which Alison is internally thankful for.

"What do you guys want to do?" Alison asks.

"Aaron Jackson, where is that slipper before I tell your friends about the time you poked your eyes with chopsticks," Grandma Zhang calls from upstairs. They all interrupt into laughter, except Aaron since he has blood rushing to his cheeks.

"I'll be back," he says in a tiny voice and runs upstairs.

"Grandma is old but she can still karate your butt!" Jean calls out to Aaron.

* * *

After trying on several dress, Reyna finally makes her choice on the dress she wants, thanks to Luke and Andrew. But still, her mind still lingers on Andrew's question, _Are you going alone?_

Of course she doesn't want to go alone. She's not sure on how the people whom she hasn't seen in 14 years will react, and she'll need the moral support. She considers Bianca, but she knows Bianca won't agree with it since she isn't the partying type of person. Beckendorf wouldn't go with her since he isn't the social type of person, and plus, he has Silena; Silena would probably coo Beckendorf, much to his embarrassment. She's thinking long and hard to ask Luke or Andrew. Whoever she takes, she'll have to reveal to them her secret: she's a demigod.

"Are you feeling okay?" Andrew asks, placing a strong hand of his on her shoulder.

Reyna sighs, her head against a door. "I'm okay," she fakely smiles.

Andrew frowns as he says, "Is going to the reunion that bad?"

"I guess so," her shoulders slump.

"You're nervous?" he asks. "I've known you, Reyna, for a long time, and this is the first time I ever see you nervous."

"Enjoy it for now because this is probably the first and _last_ time you'll ever see me in this state," she mutters.

"You'll be fine babe," Andrew assures.

"Babe?" Reyna furiously asks, her eyes locking with his.

"There's the Reyna I know," he teases.

"I don't like the name, 'babe,'" she angrily says, trying not to grit her teeth from how mad she is.

"I rather see you mad than nervous," he laughs.

"Why?" she suspiciously asks.

"Because you're actually you when you're mad, and not you when you're nervous."

"Is this some slick line you've used on other girls?"

"No. Believe me, I would've used something cheesy but I told you something original," he confesses.

"Should I be blushing?"

Andrew leans in and whispers to her ear, "You tell me." She feels his hot breath tickle her right ear, sending shivers down her spine. He backs away from her and slowly walks away.

"What is his problem?" Luke demands, outrage.

"He was give me 'advice,'" she tells him.

"Oh, I see he turned from Mr. Seductive to Dr. Seductive or Dr. Griffin," Luke puts both hands on the side of his hips.

"He just saw me nervous and came to cheer me up about it," she explains.

"You aren't covering for him right? If he did something to you, you'll tell me right?" panic in his voice.

Reyna can't help but feel annoy or mad at him. "Luke, you know I would've kicked his butt if he tried anything else."

"True," he agrees. "I just don't want him trying anything on you. It's still weird that you're in mutual terms with him; you guys hated each others guts, and now he's giving you advice!"

"You should give Alison those talks when she's thirty and has a boyfriend," she smiles.

"I would have Alison dressed in sweatpants, and a turtleneck with one of those monkey backpack that has a leash attached to it."

"Oh wow," she says, imagining Alison trying to yank of the leash.

"She'd have a fit," Luke says. He turns and sees Andrew patiently waiting outside of the shop. "Wanna grab something to eat?" he asks Reyna.

"Sure," she agrees. Besides, Reyna is pretty sure that she'll puke her heart out by the end of tonight.

* * *

"Which tie?" Jason asks, holding up a blue tie and a crimson red one.

"Which one?" Bobby consults Dakota.

"Try the blue first," Dakota pionts. Jason does as he is told and puts the blue tie to his chest.

"That reminds me of a blueberry muffin," Bobby speaks up.

"Try the red one," Dakota says, avoiding the urge to wrap grape vines around Bobby.

Jason put the red one on him and his friends smile. "Rojo," Bobby says in Spanish.

"I just need to tie it," Jason mutters. He's never been good at tying ties, Reyna used to do that for him.

"Gwen can tie it," Dakota suggests, standing up. He has on a black suit with a lavender color tie messily tied, black dress shoes, and his usual frizzy curly hair is brushed out and neatly combed.

"You're still planning on surprising her?" Bobby asks, wearing a black suit as well but a light pink since according to him, 'Real men wear pink.'

"Of course," Dakota cheerfully answers.

"You're not gonna bring her wine again, are you?" Bobby asks. One time, Dakota forgot to buy flowers for Gwen for a date, and he ended up bringing her wine from the company he owns.

"I had to think of something!" he pleads.

"Let's go," Jason says, ignoring the bickering between them.

* * *

Reyna is having lunch with Luke and Andrew at the food court. Originally, they insisted on buying her food, but she told them that she would buy it.

Now, she's sitting at a dark wood round table, eating Chinese food with the two boys. She's a bit surprise that they aren't bickering as muh like in the beginning, but she's happy about that.

* * *

Luke and Andrew can't stand each other. The only reason on why they aren't arguing is because they have a agreement:

_"She's worried," Andrew noticed._

_"Nice observation," Luke sarcastically complimented._

_"Is this reunion that bad for her?" he asked._

_"Yes," Luke muttered. "I'm not sure that us fighting is helping to calm down her nerves."_

_"You let your mouth run."_

_"Me? You always say something that causes me snap back."_

_"Objection. You're always making fun of me, and I find it quite intolerable at times."_

_"I know your streak with females. Reyna happens to be a close companion of mine, and I have absolutely no plan on you to cause her anymore pain that she'll probably be in." He didn't want Reyna to have anymore pain. If it was him, he'd take the pain for her and whatever else that came along with it._

_"You think I plan on taking Reyna away from you?" Andrew asked._

_"I mean pain, dimwit."_

_"I would never hurt her."_

_"Yeah, I know because it's on my watch," Luke poked himself in the chest._

_"You're attracted to her, aren't you?" Andrew wiggled his eyebrows. Luke wanted to yank them off with duck tape at that moment._

_"Why?" Luke suspiciously asked._

_"It seems quite obvious."_

_"I'll make a deal with you."_

_"About?"_

_"Since Reyna has other things in her mind, how about we try to keep it down and try not to fight like old grandmas who argue over a darn bingo game."_

_"I'll do it, only because of her."_

_"Agreed."_

When Reyna looks into another direction, they can help but stare daggers at each other.

* * *

Reyna considers her both options: Luke or Andrew. If she takes Luke, Luke will be like an anchor when she'll need him when she gets overwhelm, but will be over protective over her; if she takes Andrew, Andrew can do the same thing but make her feel awkward at times and she has a good feeling he'll desert her, or not. She makes her choice and she can't believe she's actually doing this:

"Do you boys want to come?" she asks.

Luke and Andrew look at each other with their eyebrows furrow together, confuse. "Where?" Andrew slowly asks.

"The reunion I told you about."

"I thought you wants to go solo," Luke says.

"I don't want to be alone," Reyna says.

"Are you—"

"I'll come with you," Andrew cuts off Luke.

Luke glares at Andrew as he says, "Sure."

"Okay," she says, relieve.

She's just not sure how people might react when she brings two guys with her.

* * *

"What do you guys wanna do?" Alison asks.

"I know that you don't want to go back into the pool," Jean answers.

"True," Alison says. She has a good feeling that it'll take a long time for her to ever get back into a pool.

"It's fine," Nick assures.

"Have you almost drown into a pool?" she challenges.

"Yes," he confesses. "I don't like being in the pool."

"But you don't mind being near one?" Jean asks.

"Not really, it kind of annoys me to be honest. But I was willing I jump in," he confesses.

Alison can already hear Jean's mental cooing in her head. "Any flaws?" she asks.

"Mmm…" Nick drifts off.

"He's thinking if he has any," Jean playfully says, causing Alison to laugh.

"An over achiever," he answers.

"Explain," Alison says.

"I try to achieve things to please others, even though it may not make me happy or not."

"Like?"

"Football. I'm more of person who likes to sit around and think about things."

"Solitude?" Jean asks.

"I guess you can say that," he says.

"And?" Alison asks.

"I try seeing the good in people even though I may end up being burn at times."

Like Mackenzie, Alison automatically thinks. "Really?" encouraging him to continue.

"My dad often ignores me and say that I have to do this and that. I don't want to disappoint him, so I do it."

"That's where the over achiever thing comes from?" Jean asks.

"Yup."

"Grandma Zhang!" Aaron yells from upstairs.

Alison darts her eyes to the stairs and sees Grandma Zhang walk down the stairs. "Of course I can go," Grandma Zhang tells Aaron.

"You can't even see the road properly," Aaron walks down the stairs.

"I'll have you know that I can see well like a hawk."

"More like a blind bat," he mutters.

"Respects your elders," she reminds.

"Not when their basically trying to commit suicide," he reasons.

"What's happening?" Jean asks.

"I want to go to the reunion that you're parents are going to," Grandma Zhang tells her great-granddaughter.

"You aren't considering to drive, are you?" Jean nervously asks.

Grandma Zhang almost looks like a blowfish from how mad she's becoming. "I am capable to drive," she snaps.

"We should take you," Aaron suggests.

"You're only 14," she reminds.

"I've driven cars before," he confesses.

"I'll be on my way," she says making an exit to the door but he stops her.

"I'm not letting you risk lives."

"We should go with you," Jean speaks up.

"No," Grandma Zhang stubbornly says.

"Alison thinks so too," Jean elbows Alison.

"Ouch," Alison runs her stomach. "We insist that we'll accompany since it'll probably be a long journey and it's accustom to accompany elders." She isn't sure what she says is true, but it sounds good to her.

Grandma Zhang stays silent, knowing that even though Alison doesn't know what she's talking about she still looks like she's confident about that. She likes that. "Very well," she decides.

"A field trip?" Nick jokes.

"Haha, that was hilarious. I almost forgot to laugh," Aaron sarcastically replies.

"Is it a formal party?" Jean asks.

"Yes," her grandmother replies.

"I'll be back," Jean tugs Alison's hand and takes her upstairs to her room.

"Dang it," Alison curses.

* * *

Dakota is very nervous since he's standing in front of Gwen's apartment with yellow roses in his hand. He knows that it's very cliché thing of him to do, but it isn't time for originality since he has other plans with her for later.

He knocks the door and patiently waits. Minutes later, the chestnut color door opens and reveals Gwen with a baby blue, knee length, strap, V-neck dress with a small train from behind, and a belt that looks like two pieces of rope intwine. Her long blonde hair is down with curls that slightly curl at the tip, and a thin gold chain necklace lays beautifully around her thin neck. Dakota stays silent, not knowing what to say.

"I thought you forgot," Gwen speaks first.

"Yeah," Dakota barely manages to say, still speechless.

"Are those for me?" Gwen sweetly asks, knowing the answer already. Without him answering, she grabs her bouquet of yellow roses and takes a good look at Dakota's attire. He looks adorable, she thinks.

She walks to her kitchen, her nude heels clanking against the dark wood floors. She enters the large kitchen and opens a white cabinet where she pulls out a green ceramic vase. From the drawer, she takes out a pair of red scissors and cuts the end of the roses. She unwraps the roses from the plastic wrapped around them and puts the roses inside the vase. Gwen then carries the case to the circular glass table and puts it at the center.

"Ready?" she asks out loud to Dakota. Her light blue eyes look up and meets Dakota's dark ones. "Are you there?" she teases. Gwen grabs her beige clutch bag and walks out the door, closing the door behind her. "Come on," she tells him, lacing her thin soft fingers with his rough ones. She tugs his hand and they begin to walk together. Dakota is still star struck with how breathtaking Gwen looks to him. Through her blonde hair, she slightly turns her head and sees Dakota's face which causes her to erupt into a fit of giggles.

I can get use to it, she thinks.

She can't wait for the night to begin and will be sad when the night will eventually have to end and maybe have tears in her eyes. Or maybe she'll be happy with what happen.

* * *

Reyna walks downstairs, trying not to fall downstairs while she's putting on a small gold earring. She has on a crimson red dress that has a scoop neckline that has small ruffles around the edges, from the neckline to the mid-waist are vertical folds in the fabric in between the chest area, 3 inches of flower pattern lace is around the waist where the folds between the chest stops at, sheer fabric is for the bottom of the dress that reaches at knee-length, a small red rose at the bottom right of the dress, and black low-high heels. Her wavy black hair is down, minus two pieces are in braids and tied together into the back, and her long bangs are behind her ear. The make-up involves a very small amount of foundation, make-up in her cheeks that help make her cheeks look a bit define, mascara, light brown eyeshadow, lip balm.

On her way down the stairs, she sees Luke's and Andrew's awe expression. "There's nothing to look at," she says, fighting the urge to smile.

"You look breathtaking," Andrew compliments, following by a wink.

"You don't look bad yourself," Reyna says. Andrew has on a black suit that has gold cuffs, a white button down shirt, and a light gray bow with his hair neatly combed. He looks rather dashing for Reyna's taste.

Luke awkwardly coughs, causing Reyna to erupt into a small smile. Luke has on a light gray suit, a light blue button down shirt, and a navy blue and white stripe tie. Reyna knows for a fact that he's older than by 7 year, but it doesn't show that he's older than her since he doesn't have any wrinkles across his face but looks youthful. As a matter of fact, he looks very boyish with his blond hair slightly messy.

"I assume we're taking my car," Reyna says as she takes her eyes away from Luke's.

"I thought we can take mine," Andrew suggests.

"I thought you had car trouble," Luke is the first to speak.

"That's called mechanic got it fixed," Andrew slowly tell him, as if Luke is a kindergartner.

"The piece of junk?" Reyna remembers.

"It's an expensive piece of junk," Andrew recites, smiling.

Luke can't help but feel awkward so he once again coughs. "I assume you're driving," he assumes.

"Yeah," Andrew answers, fishing his keys from his back pocket and holds the out.

"I'll follow," Reyna says. Andrew nods and holds the door open for her, while Luke offers his arm. She takes the arm and sees that Andrew slightly frowns but ignores it and walks with Luke out the door.

"I never knew you could rock a dress so well," Luke cheekily whispers to her.

"There's a lot of lot of things you know about me," she mysteriously replies.

"That's why you're a catch," he winks.

"Stop that. Before you end up like Andrew," she playfully pushes him. Andrew jogs ahead of them and to the navy blue Corvette and opens the door.

"Where am I going to be at?" Luke asks. Andrew pulls the passenger seat forward and and silently points to the back. "Really?"

"Or do you prefer your car?" Andrew asks, raising an eyebrow.

"My BMW can take us there," Luke says, rolling his eyes.

"We don't have time for that, now do we?" Andrew challenges.

"We'll take my car," Reyna snaps, grabbing her keys from her purse as she walks to her car. "Luke, catch," she says, throwing her keys at him. Luke can't help but smirk at Andrew as he catches the car keys.

"Thank you," he cheerfully thanks, walking to Reyna's car and opening the passenger's side for her. Reyna goes inside and Luke opens the other passenger's side for Andrew. "Hurry," Luke urges. Andrew grunts but eventually gets inside of the car as Luke closes the door behind him.

"Tell me where," Luke tells Reyna, turning in the car.

"Head forward and it's actually a camp," she confesses.

* * *

"Camp?" Luke asks, confuse.

"Yes," Reyna says, not understanding why Luke is behaving his way. _Camp,_ the word runs into Luke's head. He hasn't thought of the word, _camp,_ for a long time.

"In the woods?" he asks.

"Yes," Reyna repeats.

"Okay," Luke decides to hush up so Reyna won't notice what's wrong with him.

Luke isn't sure what he has himself into.

* * *

Alison is in the car with Grandma Zhang, Jean, Nick, and Aaron. Of course, Alison is in the passenger seat and Grandma Zhang is driving the vehicle. The vehicle happens to be a cherry red and white Volkswagen camper van. Sure, Alison thinks the car looks cool, but what she didn't expect is to be in the passenger seat with an elder woman driving it.

"How old is the car?" she politely asks. The interior of the car looks nice with its two built-in beige couches.

"This car has seen its worth days," Grandma Zhang proudly says.

"In battle?" Aaron whispers from the back.

"Where are we going?" Nick asks.

"A camp reunion," Grandma Zhang replies.

"Heads up: you'll meet a crazy guy with blond hair who is crazy and likes slaying teddy bears, another one who has a drinking problem, and others where I will explain later," Aaron says.

"Okay?" Nick and Alison say confuse. She directs her attention back in the road and sees that the car goes through a tunnel and tall trees lay ahead. "Where is this?" she asks.

"Around Berkley," Jean says.

* * *

Jean is totally freaking out on how she'll explain things to Alison if anything freaky happens. She can't believe she agree to this:

_"Why are we taking them?" Jean asked. Alison was upstairs changing into a dress as Nick was outside speaking on the phone._

_"That girl does not know her heritage," Grandma Zhang said._

_"What?" Aaron asked, not sure on what he heard._

_"She has that special aura," Grandma Zhang explained._

_"The why Nick?" Aaron asked. Personally, it sounded rude to Jean on the tone he used, but she decided not to chide him._

_"He seems smarter than what he looks," Grandma Zhang answered._

_"Meaning?" Aaron asked._

_"He knows something is wrong since you took the water off of you and you know exactly why you shouldn't have done that!" she chided._

_"You heard?" he acted shock. "And?"_

_"It seems like you don't want him to go," Jean noticed._

_"No," he scowled. "It's just that we're not supposed to bring mortals into the demigod world."_

_"You're broke many rules, so you can do the same," Grandma Zhang said, slightly annoyed._

_"He already has," Jean reminded._

She can't help but laugh at herself when she saw the boys reaction to the dress they had on:

_Jean was upstairs with Alison. Her closet was wide open as she looked through dresses she had. Alison was on her bed, complaining that she didn't want a dress and would rather go in the clothing she was in._

_"It's formal," Jean said. She remembered that she read the letters that were for her parents when she read them at midnight when shewas stealing cookies and some milk._

_"I rather wear a suit," Alison muttered._

_"I'll literally smear lipstick on you so you can change," she joked, laughing._

_"Whatever," she said defeated. "I don't want it to be tight nor anything frilly."_

_"Anything else, diva," Jean sarcastically said._

_"No," Alison covered her face with a pillow._

_"Here," she handed her a dress and grabbed a dress herself. "Change," she ordered her, walking to the exit._

_"Here?" Alison asked, confused._

_"Yes," Jean walked out and changed inside the bathroom._

_Minutes later, Jean walked out in a rose-pink strapless dress with the top of the dress that had diamonds, the waist area was snug and the length of the dress fell to her knees. She walked to walked to the her room and found Alison struggling with the zipper from behind. Jean stood at the doorway, biting her tongue to avoid laughing._

_Alison turned and saw Jean miserably failing to avoid laughing. "Help me," she said. Jean agreed and pulled up the zipper. Alison turned and revealed herself wearing a neon blue, knee-length, black ribboned, see-through black lace that started at the waist and to the knees. _

_"You look hot," Jean joked._

_"Shut up," she insisted, gutting Jean in the gut._

_"Walk downstairs," she ordered, walking to the door. Jean quickly turned and saw Alison twirling in her dress and she laughed when their eyes met._

_"Come on," Alison said, embarrassed as she tugged Jean's arms down the stairs._

_When they arrived downstairs, they saw the boys staring each other downwith piercing eyeballs at each other and their expression softened once they saw the girls—Alison—walk down the stairs. Both their eyes popped open in awe and Jean could've sworn she saw Alison's cheeks turned cherry red._

_"Woah," Nick and Aaron said in awe._

"Is it you that need to go the wacko house?" Alison jokes.

"Are you talking about yourself?" Jean curiously asks, raising a suspicious eyebrow.

"No," she says between laughter. Jean feels her muscle relax because she trusts her. Whatever happens, happens, she thinks.

* * *

Jason is finally back where everything began—Camp Jupiter. Currently, he's at a table in the Coliseum of New Rome. The Coliseum is a large structure whose shape is a cylinder that happens to be a little bit over three stories high, arch doorways on the first stories, and arch windows on the next two floors. Upon the inside of the Coliseum, the seats reminds Jason of giant steps that so happen to be seating chairs, four balconies that are across from each other, and the floor has wood that covers the large pit from below. Across the wood floor are table of white table cloths and purple cloth topping over it with the center a silver bucket fill with ice and two bottles of champagne.

"Will you stop?" Bobby asks, half annoy. He sits next to Jason who's impatiently tapping his right foot with a rose in his hand as his eyes wander to the door entrance every 5 minutes.

"I'm about to have a panic attack," he hisses.

"I know you're happy, but can you please not do the tapping?" Bobby asks.

"Fine," Jason agrees.

"Do you still think she's coming?"

"Of course."

"How?"

"I feel it in my heart."

"You sound like such a pu—"

"Pumpkin," Jason interrupts, not wanting Bobby to say something that he'll later regret.

"Okay," Bobby agrees.

Jason pulls out the gold locket from his pocket and closes his hand around it.

* * *

"That was a lot of hiking," Andrew says.

"Not really," Luke says.

"Really?" Reyna asks. They've pass Praetorian Gates and are on their way to the Pomerian Line. Reyna doesn't know what to say when Luke and Andrew see Terminus. She starts to think that it was a bad idea to take Luke and Andrew with her. She can't help but feel that she is betraying the Romans by taking in two strangers.

She looks at Luke and sees that he has a lost expression in his eyes.

* * *

Luke remembers. He remembers when they drove past Mount Orthyos. He remembers when he fought against Thalia, when he saw Annabeth and Percy holding the sky, and so on. Memories flood Luke's mind. In his stomach, he feels his guts churn and remembers how it felt like to stab himself in order to save others.

He knows. He knows it all. Reyna has to be a demigod or has bloodlines to them. He's always known about the Romans since Kronos told him about it; he even had the opportunity to see the Romans fight. They can whip butt, Luke thinks.

"Luke," Reyna calls to him, worry.

"Yes?" Luke asks.

"You okay?"

"Yeah."

Luke doesn't know who he might recognize at this "reunion" of Reyna but he knows he was somehow meant to come. _Is it fate or destiny? Why do the Fates hate me?_

He dreads the moment when he'll see someone who he might recognize. Luke feels his eyes sting by the wrong he has done but chides himself not to. It helped mold who you are, he think, his eyes shut. He can't help but feel happy that everything passed, he's actually thankful because it wouldn't have guide him to two special people in his life.

* * *

They all arrive at the Pomerian Line. Reyna sees a young-girl in her early twenties. The girl is small with long jet-black hair tied into two ponytails, olive-skin, full lips wearing a loose pink shirt and light blue pants. She looks up, and Reyna sees those brown eyes. Reyna knows those eyes.

"Julia," she says in awe.

"Rey—Rey—Reyna," Julia stutters. She gets up from her chair, throwing her magazine on the floor, and eagerly hugs Reyna. "You look stunning," Julia compliments.

_"Ubi est Terminus?"_ Where is Terminus?

_"Verbum adventum tuum transiit per Romam velut feras ignis. Romani Reyna noris nos sumus servata non est, sed bona fama nolumus. Romanorum exspectare adventum tuum!" _Word on your arrival, passed through Rome like wild fire. You know that us Romans are reserved, but we don't mind good gossip everyone in a while. We've waited the arrival of your own!

"Terminus?" Reyna repeats.

_"Terminus est statua. Qualiter sibi tua hospites cum pugnat vident Terminus? Duos convivae sunt, potens cute. Factum est autem cum ego dixi Terminus ut abscondaris dum ego dimittam vos, et hospitibus fefellitus."_ Terminus is a statue. How do think your guest will feel when thy see Terminus? Your two guest are very cute. When word can of your arrival with your two guests, I told Terminus to hide while I let you and the guests past.

"Oh," Reyna understands. After Julia performs the procedures of emptying their pockets to see if they have any weapons, she let them pass and they were in their way.

* * *

It's been a while since Luke has heard Latin. He remembers that Chiron, the Camp Half-Blood director, used to teach Latin class.

_"Verbum adventum tuum transiit per Romam velut feras ignis. Romani Reyna noris nos sumus servata non est, sed bona fama nolumus. Romanorum exspectare adventum tuum!" _Julia said. To Luke, she said, "The verb is a transmit of the Roman's fur ignites. Roman Reyna Noris will you serve food? Romans experience adventure!" Yeah, that doesn't sound right, he admits to himself.

"Terminus?" he hears Reyna say. The god Terminus? he wonders.

_"Terminus est statua. Qualiter sibi tua hospites cum pugnat vident Terminus? Duos convivae sunt, potens cute. Factum est autem cum ego dixi Terminus ut abscondaris dum ego dimittam vos, et hospitibus fefellitus." _In Luke translation, "Terminus is a statue. How do think your guest will feel when thy see Terminus? Your two guest are very cute. When word can of your arrival with your two guests, I told Terminus to hide while I let you and the guests past." He fixes his tie, flatter of that compliment.

Andrew seems to have heard "cute" since he starts to fix his tie too.

* * *

Julia fiercely waves goodbye to Reyna as the grouch of Terminus appears.

"Get the leaves off of me," he grumbles. Terminus is made of stone with no arms and legs, just torso and up. He has on a toga and curly stone hair with his chisel cheekbones—literally.

"Hold up," Julia says, brushing him off with her two hands. Yes, Terminus sometimes—almost all the time—annoys her but she has to admit: she has a soft spot for the old stone head. Sure, she could've found a job a long one ago, but she feels loyal to Terminus for all the guidance he has told her and helps to keep her in line to follow rules.

"She isn't the same girl anymore," Terminus notice about Reyna.

"I know."

"Did you tell her?"

"That Grace is inside."

"Oh." Julia feels like face palming herself.

* * *

After much walking through dirt with heels, Alison is sick of it; the heel of her shoe sinks to the ground and she has to pull I out of the ground every time she walks.

Grandma Zhang looks fine as she walks on the green grass.

They past a river that Jean and Aaron call 'Little Tiber River.' Two teenagers, Alison's age, are standing, looking like warriors with their shiny armor with swords in their hands.

"What—"

"I'm going through," Grandma Zhang passes without any word.

"I'm—" Jean says.

"Sorry for that," Aaron quickly cuts off.

"Come," Jean grabs Alison's and Nick's arms and tugs them to walk.

Alison doesn't know what she's seeing since she sees many teens with purple shirts that say, "Camp Jupiter." There are large columns made of marble that look royal, yet modern. She walks pasts five barracks and wonders why there's only five.

"I know it's cool," Aaron says.

"Yeah," she slowly says.

* * *

Percy and Annabeth Jackson walk arm in arm inside of the Coliseum. Percy has on a dark gray suit with a deep green tie that make his sea-green eye pop, and a light blue and white stripe shirt; while Annabeth has on a dark green, silk, long, V-neck dress with thin straps.

"I see you're watching the architecture," Percy can't help but notice. Annabeth looks at Percy and sees pure amusement in his eyes. Even after all the years of marriage, he still manages to make her heart flutter, even though she wants to rip his head off at times.

"Is there anything wrong about that?" she playfully asks.

"That you can't help it."

"I know."

"Even though the doctor told you not to make models when you were pregnant with Aaron."

"At least—"

"Yo, lovebirds, over here," Clarisse hollers.

"Thank you, Clarisse," Percy whispers, receiving a glare from the great Annabeth.

* * *

Dakota and Gwen walk into the Coliseum and stare at their surroundings. "It's beautiful," she comments, staring at the lanterns.

"Not as beautiful as seeing Octavian's face with horse poop," Dakota chuckles. Way to ruin the moment, Dakota.

Gwen frowns but ignores his comment. "I see Jason with Bobby," Gwen cheerfully says, pointing at their table.

"Let's go," Dakota says, walking to the table.

* * *

Reyna walks into the Coliseum and can't help but feel teary eye. The Coliseum looks spectacular, beautiful, breathtaking, grand, and other words Reyna can't think of.

"There's an empty table," Andrew says, pointing to a table. Reyna seats herself at the table, and her two guests follow. Luke consciously fiddles with his hair.

"Is there something wrong?" Reyna asks, concern.

"Nothing," he assures.

Andrew clasps a hand on Luke's shoulder. "Is there a woman you find attractive?" he teases.

"You're hilarious," Luke snarks, taking Andrew's hand off of him.

"Will you stop?" Reyna can't help but smile. The way both Andrew and Luke bicker reminds her of Bobby and Dakota:

_Jason and Reyna were in Reyna's praetor cabin, preparing a bowl of candy for the trick or treaters._

_"Can I eat the candy," Jason pleaded, "Just one piece."_

_Reyna sighed, "One candy leads to another."_

_"It does not!" Jason shouted in a childish voice._

_Reyna shrugged, "It doesn't matter."_

_"Doesn't matter what?" Jason asked._

_"You will not get candy," Reyna firmly said._

_"Why not?" Jason asked. There was a knock on the door._

_"Answer the door," she ordered._

_"I don't have to," Jason snapped. Reyna looked at Jason with an expression that said, what did you say to me. "I'll get it," Jason whimpered, and left to answer the door._

_"Trick or treat!" Two voices yelled. Reyna turned to see who screamed._

_"Bobby, why did you dress like a cow?" Jason asked Bobby._

_"I like utters," Bobby replied._

_"I swear, something is wrong with that kid," Dakota said._

_"Oh, yeah, I, at least, ain't dress like the kool-aid man!" Bobby yelled._

_"For your information, the kool-aid man is red, I am purple," Dakota pointed out. Reyna looked at Dakota, and Bobby's costume: Bobby wore a cow costume with black spots, and a red necklace with a bell tied around his neck. Bobby's face was painted with black spots, like his costume, and his head was located in the neck of the cow with the cow's face on top of Bobby's head. Dakota wore a kool-aid man costume that was purple, and his head was on top of kool-aid man's face._

_"Aren't you guy old to go out an ask for candy?" Jason asked._

_"It's for a good cause," Bobby said._

_"This ought to be amusing," Reyna interrupted, "what cause?"_

_"The Bobby Cause," Bobby said with sadness, his brown eyes widen._

_"The Bobby Cause?" Jason repeated._

_"Yes, help Bobby, the mental child, cover his medical treatments from getting beat up so badly. One change at a time. One piece of candy can make a huge difference, between life and death," Dakota narrated while Bobby did puppy eyes._

_"Medical bills?" Reyna asked._

_"Yes, me, and Dakota are growing up," Bobby said._

_"Saving money," Dakota said._

_"How is trick or treating saving money?" Jason asked._

_"For the love of Pluto," Bobby said as he slammed his forehead with his hand, "we don't need to buy the candy! It's free. No money."_

_"Plus, the money we save will be put in good use," Dakota adds._

_"Like what?" Jason asked._

_"Covering our expenses," Bobby said._

_"What kind of expenses?" Jason asked._

_"When we break stuff," Bobby whispered softly, while Dakota whistled._

_"When you guys break stuff?" Jason asked to clarify._

_"Yes," Bobby admitted._

_"You use the money to cover the things you two break," Jason said._

_"No, Bobby breaks them," Dakota clarified._

_"I do not!" Bobby yelled._

_"What about Jason's baseball bat?" Dakota asked Bobby._

_"My bat? You two broke my baseball bat?" Jason asked._

_"Not me, Bobby broke the bat. Bobby thought he can swing like Babe Ruth and things lead to another," Dakota said._

_"Bobby, is that true?" Jason asked patiently._

_"Yes.," Bobby whispered, and looked at the floor with his cow ears down; Jason raised his hand to slap Bobby, but Dakota stopped him._

_"Calm down." Dakota instructed Jason._

_"Bobby broke my bat." Jason said._

_"Trick or treat," Bobby said as he held out his Halloween basket._

_"I'll give you a treat," Jason threatened._

_"Jason?" Reyna said. Jason turned, and looked at Reyna. "Here," Reyna said as she pointed to the side next to her._

_"Why are the two praetor of Rome together in the female praetor's cabin? The two praetor are unsupervised?" Bobby asked._

_"Good question," Dakota commented._

_"One kiss can lead to other things," Bobby said, wiggling his eyebrows._

_"We're getting ready for the kids that will trick or treat," Jason said._

_"Sure you were," Bobby said, "Jason, I never knew you were in that level."_

_"What level?" Jason asked._

_"I guess you wouldn't like it if word got out," Bobby said mysteriously._

_"Are you Octavian's long-lost brother?" Dakota joked._

_"No, that's gross. I want candy. Trick or treat," Bobby said as held out his Halloween basket, again._

_"No," Jason said._

_"Fine, you get trick," Bobby said as he walked to the door._

_"You shouldn't have done that," Dakota warned._

_"I'm not afraid of a guy dressed in cow utters," Jason said._

_"I'm a cow, thank you very much. I, at least, don't have my life resembling as Harry Pooter," Bobby said._

_"It's Harry Potter," Dakota corrected._

_"Whatever," Bobby said._

_Dakota looked at Jason, "Bobby has a point. Jason, you have a scar but on the top of your lip, Hera hates you like Harry's aunt, you defeated the dark lord Kronos like Harry with Lord Voldemort. Your Harry Potter!"_

_"I am not! Out!" Jason yelled._

_"You will feel my wrath, Jason Grace," Bobby warned._

_"Bobby, you're as scary as Neville Longbottom," Dakota said._

_"Let's go." Bobby said as he walked out of Reyna's cabin; Dakota followed Bobby._

She smiles to herself, feeling her eyes sting because of the memory.

"What's wrong?" he asks.

"Where did he go?" Reyna asks, bewilder.

"He went to go get us drinks."

"Oh." Music plays in the background which causes him to two his feet. "What are you doing?"

"Let's dance," he suggests.

"What?" Reyna furrows her eyebrows.

"You heard me." He grabs her hand and pulls her to the dance floor.

"I don't dance," she reminds.

"I'll teach you," he smiles.

"I'm a horrible dancer."

"Excellent."

Reyna smiles and dances with him.

* * *

Jason feels his heart sink with ever minute passing. He's half listening to Dakota, Gwen, Bobby, Percy, Annabeth, Frank, Hazel, and the others. He mingle with them for a few minutes, but his eyes wander to the entrance again.

He looks at the dance floor and sees a woman with a red crimson dress and a guy. Her back looks a lot like Reyna. The hair color looks like Reyna. The shade of skin looks a lot like Reyna, even though it looks lighter.

"What's wrong?" Hazel asks.

"Nothing," he sighs. Hazel knows that he's hopeful about seeing Reyna.

"I hope she's here tonight," she hopes.

"I hope so too," he whispers, his eyes looking at the woman that looks a lot like Reyna.

* * *

Alison walks inside of the Coliseum and it looks nice, it reminds her of the Roman Coliseum.

"It's cool, don't you think?" Jean asks.

"Yep," Alison agrees.

"How long did it take to build?" Nick asks.

"Six months," Aaron answers. Jean stares at him.

"I got it from my mom's side," Aaron says in his defense.

"This way," Grandma Zhang says. She walks to a table where adults are sitting.

"Grandma, why are you here?" Franks speaks up.

"I wanted to come," she dryly replies, taking a seat for herself.

"Alison?" Alison hears a male says. She looks up and sees Jason. Jason has on a black suit, a white shirt underneath, and a crimson red tie.

"Hi," she nervously says.

"Why are—"

"I brought her here," Grandma Zhang answers.

"What about—"

"Nicholas? I brought the boy here too."

"But—"

"It'll be wise to speak of this later," she advises.

"You wanna dance?" Nick asks, sensing that him and Alison out of place.

"Yeah," she answers, taking her hand.

"I was gonna—" Aaron says.

"Sit down," a man with sea-green eyes says.

"Go," Jean shoos, giving a tight smile. Alison smiles and walks to the dance floor with Nick.

* * *

"She look a lot like Thalia," Percy is the first to talk.

"I know," Grandma Zhang agrees.

"Where is Thalia?" Frank asks.

"She told me she was going to arrive a little late," Annabeth says.

"Why did you bring her?" Jason asks Grandma Zhang.

"The girl isn't mortal," she says.

"Meaning?"

"She is either demigod or bloodlines."

"How are you sure?" Jason questions, hoping it isn true. He doesn't want Alison to be in danger when fighting a monster, going on a quest, and having life had.

"I've never been sure in my life," she seriously says. Jason doesn't know what to say and looks back at the woman in crimson red. The woman turns, and Jason hearts nearly stops. "Reyna!" he yells out. His blue eyes water. He sees her. He's ecstatic.

* * *

Leo Valdez walks into the Coliseum and stares at the inside. The Coliseum look wonderful to him.

"Leo Valdez is in the house, thank you very much," he says to himself, fixing monkey tie.

* * *

**He saw her! I know you guys were impatient so I sped up the pace to this point. I'll update next week! Promise! I swear on the River of Styx. ****I hope you liked it. This chapter is long. Sorry that I took long, but now you know why I took long since this chapter is a little bit over 10k.**

**The Halloween story that Reyna remembered is I story that I actually wrote, "Trick or Treat." You can read it if you want the full story.**

**Can you do me a favor? Can you check out my other story called "The Search for the Golden Apple"? It's about Luke and his failed quest.**

**I'll give you guys an option: do you want the guy Reyna is dancing with to be Luke or Andrew. Tell me who! On Andrew's hairstyle, I imagined the way Justin Timberlake currently has it with his hair gelled up.^.^**

**About the Leo part: I couldn't help it! I had to incorporate Leo somehow.**


	15. Chapter 15

**I kept true to my word! Thanks you, I am Bianca daughter of Hades, for the quote she told me a while ago.:) Can you read "Obsidian Glass"? It was a story I wrote about the seven briefly remebering about Reyna and strange events happens to each of them.  
**

* * *

_"Only the broken-hearted know the truth about love."_

_-Mason Cooley_

* * *

Luke takes Reyna to the dance floor and gives her a nervous smile. Reyna puts her hands on Luke's shoulder, and he takes it as a welcoming and puts both his hands on her waist and pulls her closer to him.

She forces herself not to flinch because it'll send the wrong message to Luke that she isn't comfortable with him when she actually is. Together, Luke and Reyna move at the beat of the music of "This I Promise You" by *N sync.

"It's been a while since I've heard this song," Luke whispers.

"This is the first time I've heard it," she confesses.

"You'll love it as much as I do."

"If you say so."

Luke smiles and grabs her right hand and twirls her. When Reyna is halfway to end the twirl, she hears someone call her out: "Reyna!"

Her heart nearly stops.

* * *

Truth is, Alison isn't fond of the whole dancing thing, but she's willing to dance with Nick. "You know how to dance to a slow dance?" she asks him.

"Yup," he answers, grabbing Alison's hand and gently pushing her towards him. She smiles and puts her hand on his shoulder and moves to the soothing song that she has never heard before.

"Do you know this song?"

"Nope," he confesses, "but it sounds like Justin Timberlake."

"Amen," she agrees as Nick twirls her.

"Alison, I have to tell you something," he begins, "I─"

"Reyna!" she hears a voice that sounds similar to Jason's. Reyna? Mom? Alison wonders. Alison turns and sees that it's Jason, but he's standing up with his blue eyes watery and looking at someone—her mom.

"What?" she madly whispers to herself. "What's happening?"

She sees that her mom is with Luke. Her mom nods at Jason and she laces her hand with Luke's hand, and together, they walk to the table.

"You want to check it out?" Nick asks.

"Yeah," Alison says, already grabbing Nick's hand and tugging it.

* * *

Annabeth sees Luke with Reyna and gets up, a glass of champagne in her hand. "Luke," she barely manages to whisper out. Luke's blue eyes looks at Annabeth kindly and tenderly.

"Hey, Annie," he says, calling her by her nickname.

Annabeth's glass falls to the floor and shatters, but she doesn't care. "Luke," she repeats taking a step towards Luke, but Percy grabs her hand and Annabeth tugs it out of his and continues toward Luke.

"Luke, how do you know her?" Reyna suspiciously asks.

"I should ask the same for you," he replies. Annabeth approaches Luke and gently traces the scar on the side of his right face.

"This can't be happening," she says in disbelief, "I thought you went into another life." She slowly throws her arms around him and runs her hands through his blond hair; Luke is both taken off guard of her gesture but embraces them as he hugs her. She sobs in his arms and sobs even harder as Luke hugs her.

* * *

"Reyna," Jason whispers.

Reyna returns her attention from Luke and Annabeth to Jason. "You seem different," she comments, not knowing what to say.

"Reyna!" Gwen says, running into Reyna's arms and tightly hugs her.

"Gwendolyn, you look beautiful," Reyna comments. "Are you with Dakota after all these years of liking him?"

Gwen blushes and nods. Reyna smiles and looks over Gwen's shoulders and sees Bobby and Dakota smiling and waving at her. Gwen turns her attention at Jason and sees that he's ghastly pale as he looks at Reyna, so she returns to her seat.

"I've been a wreck since the day that you left," Jason chocks up.

"I left for a reason," she darkly says.

"What!" a voice shouts.

Reyna's obsidian eyes searches for the voice and they finally land on Alison. "Alison," she says.

"You know her," Jason wildly asks.

"Of course, she's my mom," Alison snaps.

"I was right about my dream," Jason seems to tell himself. "You had a baby that had dark hair as a toddler, I never figured..."

You just don't know that she's our daughter, Reyna wants to say but can't find the voice to speak.

"Dreams?" Alison processes. Her blue eyes shoot wide open. "It's my mom who you couldn't stop thinking about nonstop!" she angrily grits her teeth. "What did you do?" she shouts at him as thunder crackles in the background. "No wonder I took her side because you screwed up badly. I should've know! I should've connected the dots earlier!" She blinks back tears but they fall anyways.

"Alison," Reyna says, opening her arms but refuses.

"I hate you!" Alison yells at Jason at the top of her lungs and runs out of the Coliseum.

"Alison!" Reyna yells after her. She lets go of Luke' s hand and runs after Alison.

* * *

"Thunder boomed," Dakota says.

"And it wasn't because of Jason," Percy says.

"She can be your daughter," Bobby realizes.

"What?" Jason begins to panic. "I have to find her, before she leaves me again." He runs after Reyna and Alison.

* * *

Thalia walks to the the Coliseum. She's thrill that she gets to see her baby brother. Jason gets mad when she calls him baby brother but knows that he secretly enjoys it.

She's a couple of feet away from the Coliseum and sees a girl that strangely looks a lot like her but is covering her face and sounds like she's crying. Thalia freezes and the girls bumps into her. "What's wrong?" Thalia asks, not caring that the girl bumped into her.

"I─I─" the girls barely manages to say. Thalia looks at the Coliseum and sees that no one is looking for her.

"Come on," she pats the girl's back.

"What?" the girl asks.

"Lets talk," Thalia tells her.

* * *

Reyna finally manages to reach the outside of the Coliseum with her feet aching. She curses herself for taking heels and takes them off as she frantically looks for her daughter. "Where is she?" she asks herself. She doesn't know where to look. "It's so big," she tells herself. Reyna's heart thumps loudly in her chest as she begins to worry about Alison.

"Reyna!" Jason calls out to her. Her worry is now replace with anger as she hears Jason call her.

"What do you want?" she angrily asks him.

Jason furrows his eyebrows as he says, "Don't use that attitude with me! Thunder boomed in the sky and I wasn't the one who caused that!" he hisses.

"It could've been Thalia! It could've been you since you can't keep your temper under control," she growls at him.

"She's my daughter, isn't she?"

Reyna doesn't want to tell him that he is. He wasn't be faithful to her, how can he be a faithful father? "No, she isn't yours. Alison is mine!"

"It takes two."

"It could've been a blessing from Juno herself."

"You know very well Juno wouldn't do that," Jason growls at her. "Alison is my daughter. She's 13!"

"No," Reyna denies.

"How can she control thunder?" he shouts at her.

"If your tiny brain can process: Thalia might've been the cause!"

"Then who is the father?" He smirks.

"Why does that matter to you?" She nervously gulps.

"So I can rip the guy's head off!" he angrily booms out, thunder loudly booms.

"After all these years, you still think about that?" she viciously asks him.

Jason grabs her and pins her against the wall, his hands on her waist. Reyna pushes him, kicks him in the groin, but Jason's height and strength works to his advantage. "I've thought about you nonstop through all these 14 years," he confesses to her.

Reyna is still kicking Jason, her face not looking at his. "Go back to Piper!" she yells. "I left so you can go back with her."

"You never let me explain," he pleads in her ear. Reyna's heart starts to beat fast and hates herself for it.

"I understood when I caught you," she chokes out, her voice beginning to crack.

"I love you."

"Well I hate you with every ounce of strength I have." She finally looks at him. His eyes are leaking with tears, but Reyna feels no remorse nor pity towards him. She finally breaks away from him and runs away from him.

"You won't leave me this time." He grabs her arm and turns her towards him.

"If you truly love me, help me find _my_ daughter," telling him as she looks at him dead in the eye.

"You mean _our_ daughter," Jason corrects. "She's angry with me, but I will win her love, and I will win your love back."

"Keep wishing." Reyna yanks her arms from his grip, but Jason once more grabs it but harshly pushes her to him and wraps his arms around her waist.

"I will," he says, stroking her cheeks as Reyna wildly begins to tear herself away from him. "I'll win it back if that's the last thing I do." He tenderly looks at her. "I love you."

"You shouldn't use words you don't know anymore."

"You're right: I know them like the back of my hand." Before Reyna has the opportunity to speak, he kisses her.

* * *

"Where did Alison go?" Nick frantically asks.

"Should we go after her?" Jean says.

"Well, her parents are looking for her," Dakota shyly says.

"So Jason has a daughter that he has never met until now," Percy says, his eyes wandering to Luke and Annabeth who are talking.

"Luke," a male says. Nick turns and sees he's uncle holding two red plastic cups in his hands.

"Yeah?" Luke says.

"Reyna," Andrew says while gritting his teeth.

Luke eyes wander around on the search for Reyna, but he can't locate her. He then remembers the shouting. "Gods," Luke curses himself.

"Idiot, and you said you wouldn't let her get hurt," he says.

"Who said she was hurt?" Luke stands up from his chair.

"Then where is she?" Andrew challenges.

"She's not here because she ran after Alison," Percy speaks up.

"Idiot," Andrew says once more and storms out of the Coliseum.

* * *

"Where did they go?" Luke asks Percy, trying not to look at him in the eye.

Percy stands up and looks at Luke from head-to-toe and smiles. "Out of the Coliseum," he answers, holding out his hand.

He looks at the hand, unsure whether he should take it or not. Finally, Luke takes the hand and firmly shakes it, and he pulls Percy into a 'man hug.'

"I always admired you and your fighting skills," Percy whispers his ear.

"I liked the way you kicked butt with monsers. But we both know that Thalia can kick both our butts."

"Well she is younger than us and more energy than us."

"Then your out of shape, Jackson." Luke laughs as pulls apart from Percy.

Do you still like Annabeth? Percy's eyes seem to say.

No, I have my eye on someone else. Luke admits.

I wonder who, Percy rolls his eyes.

Luke shakes his head and walks away, on his search for Reyna and Alison.

* * *

"We should go look for her," Aaron and Percy both suggest at the same time.

"Father like son," Hazel comments.

"At least it's not great-granddaughter and great-grandma," Aaron says as he refers to Jean and Grandma Zhang.

"We're going to go look for them," Jean determinately says.

"Just like your mother on her search for Nico," Frank remembers. Hazel blushes.

"Where is Nico?" Bobby asks.

"He's with Dad since social events aren't his thing," Hazel says.

"Are you guys staying or are you guys going to help?" Percy asks.

"Of course." Annabeth stands up and joins her husband; Everyone else stands up too.

* * *

Leo finally spots his friends at a table and walks towards them. As Leo is about 3 feet away from them, they all stand up. "Am I that bad?" Leo asks, his brown eyes wide open.

"We're looking for Reyna and her daughter," Gwen says.

Leo wiggles his eyebrows at Gwen admits to himself that she looks prettier than usual. "Hand off, Valdez, before I turn you into grapes and mush you into wine," Dakota threatens, putting a hand protectively on Gwen's waist.

"I'm going to say that that is a horrible idea because I know I look good enough to eat," Leo turns around like he's a model on the runway, "I'm not sure that I'll taste good."

"I'll explain what's happening on the way," Bobby says, clasping a hand on Leo's shoulder.

* * *

Alison can't believe that it's Jason. Jason was the person her mom would be depressed over when she was small. Jason is the person her mom can't forget. It's all Jason's fault.

And to believe she tried to understand his pain for her mom whom she didn't know until a while ago.

"It's alright," the girl pats her back, which make Alison cry harder. "I can't believe you have that much water in you," the girl mutters. Alison can't help but give a small laugh.

She cleans her face from tears with the back of her hand and sucks in her nose from any boogers that might fall out. She finally takes a good look at the girl next to her: around her age, medium height, dark blue eyes, spiky black hair, pale skin complexion, freckles sprinkles on her cheekbone, torn black jeans, a spike belt, a black shirt under a black leather jacket, and bracelets on her arms of bands that she recognizes. "You like Blood on the Dance Floor?" she asks, briefly touching the bracelet and avoids making any physical contact with the girl's skin.

"They are awesome, don't you think?" The girls smiles.

"No way! That band sucks."

"Then you don't know good music."

"Me? Look who's talking."

"Sleeping with Sirens are bad and don't get me started on Pierce the Veil."

Alison's mouth is wide open from how shock she is. "They are awesome and the song, 'King for a Day' is a masterpiece," she defends.

"They s-u-c-k, and the word I spelled is suck."

"Blood on the Dance Floor is horrible, how you can like that?" Alison looks at the girl's bracelets and sees Blink 182 on one of them. "I see Blink 182, and I'll admit that they are awesome. But Blood on the Dance Floor is horrible!"

"No."

"Imagine living like a king someday," she sings. The girls automatically cover Alison's mouth. Alison patiently waits until she removes her hand and laughs. "What's your name?"

"Thalia. You?" Thalia grabs a twig from the ground and starts to draw on the dry dirt.

You just look like my sister, she hears Jason's words in her mind. "Does your last name happens to be Grace?"

Thalia tightly grips the twig until it snaps into two. "Yes. How did you know what was my last name?"

"I met Jason." She feels irate towards Jason and finds it unbelievable that he is actually related to her. "You two look nothing alike." Thalia laughs.

"Did my brother do something that made you cry?"

Alison looks away, not wanting Thalia to see the pain she has in her eyes. "Whatever he did, he didn't mean it," Thalia sighs, "and he just happens to be stupid and he's still a kid to me so give him a break."

"You act like you're older than him." Alison smirks and crosses her legs, even though she feels like she's going to fall since she's sitting on a log.

"I am, not by age, but by life," Thalia attempts to explain but doing a poor job at it.

"What?"

"I was a pine tree when I was going to Camp Half-Blood with Annabeth and Luke." Alison notices the tone when Thalia says "Luke" as if it happened a lifetime ago.

"You know Luke? Where is Camp Half-Blood?"

"You're a Roman demigod then," Thalia drops the twig and crosses her legs to face Alison on the log.

"Demigod? Half god and half human?"

"You're probably a new recruit to the Legion," Thalia figures to herself. "Okay, everything I'm about to tell you is true," she points her index finger at Alison, "I know it might sound insane but you have to trust me on this."

"Okay?" Alison answers ,unsure. But strangely enough, she trusts her.

* * *

Reyna freezes not knowing what to do, not knowing how to respond. She finally goes back to her senses and grabs Jason's hand that's clasp on her waist and back-flips him to the floor. She quickly rolls Jason to his belly and goes on top of him with his arm pin to his back. "You shouldn't have done that," she darkly says.

"I would do that again if I had to the chance," he confesses to her. "You're not getting away from me this time. I swear. Reyna, I'm sorry."

Reyna doesn't want to hear his petty excuses, she grabs his trapezes and squeezes them which results Jason to shout. "Reyna!" a male shouts in the distance. She looks up and sees Andrew jogging towards them. Reyna quickly gets off of Jason, and while he gets up from the floor, she wipes her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Are you okay?" Andrew asks her, his mossy green eyes wide with fear.

"I'm fine," she assures him.

"Who are you?" Andrew turns her attention to Jason. Andrew analyzes Jason and remembers Reyna description of her first boyfriend: blond hair, sparkling blue eyes, well-built...

"It's your first boyfriend isn't he?" Andrew figures out, looking at Reyna.

"It doesn't matter," she tells him.

"What did you do to drive her away? Reyna is an amazing person and you sadly couldn't realize that," Andrew spats at Jason.

"Do I know you?" Jason challenges.

"No," Reyna steps in, pushing Andrew and whispering to him to calm down. Andrew pinches the bridge of his nose until he calms down and can properly think.

"Help me find Alison," Reyna tells Andrew and grabs his arm.

"I'm coming," Jason stubbornly says.

"You will certaiunly not," Reyna refuses, approaching Jason and glaring daggers at him.

Jason sees those angry obsidian orbs against his electric blue eyes, and his heart melts like melting chocalate. It didn't matter to him right now about Reyna's attitude towards him, but what matters to him is that he's seeing those eyes that he longed to see for 14 years.

"She's my daughter too," Jason says.

"He's Alison's dad?" Andrew asks, confuse.

"No," Reyna says.

"Then tell me that she isn't mine." Jason grabs her arm and once again pushes her to him.

"She isn't yours," she icily tells him, yanking her arm from his grip. Jason feels his heart fall to the floor as if it's made of glass.

He gulps and says, "You can deny it all you want, Reyna. But you know what? She looks a hell of a lot like Thalia. Who carries the same blood as her? She's my sister."

"It's called genetics, dimwit." Reyna grits her teeth at him.

"So you're telling me that you been with someone after you _abandoned_ me?"

"I left for a reason Jason and you know exactly why. Why do you care about that section of my personal life? I had a child. You probably got with numerous amounts of girls."

"No Reyna, I haven't been with anyone since you left. It wouldn't be worth being with anyone in that way if I don't mean it like it was with you," he sincerely tells her.

Reyna smirks and looks at him from head-to-toe. "Nice try," she coldly tell him. She walks to Andrew and they walk together on the search for Alison.

"I'm not giving up on you," Jason says, "and I'm certainly not giving up Alison." He then follows Andrew and Reyna.

* * *

Luke has search everywhere for both Reyna and Alison. Out of anger, Luke kicks the floor but it doesn't help since his foot crack. He's on top of a hill to have better leverage to be able to see where the girls are at.

"I should've been more careful and be watching out for them," he chides himself.

He remembers his conversation with Annabeth:

"This can't be possible that you're here," Annabeth said, between crying on his shoulder.

"It is," he assured her, gently oushing her off of him.

"Why did you come back, Luke? Thalia is still in the hunt, and I'm married to Percy." It was when Luke finally noticed the silver band on her left hand.

"Who said I came back for you guys?" Annabeth cringed, and Luke noticed that he should've chosen his words more wisely. "I came here because Reyna invited me."

"How do you know Reyna?" Annabeth quickly asked the second he finished his sentence.

"Me and Reyna go way back," Luke couldn't help but proudly have said that.

"Like?"

"Why does this have such interest to you?" He expected her to ask questions about his personal life, but he hadn't expected for her to go straight to the question.

"I thought you did rebirth." She bowed her head down.

"I wanted too, but I thought that was a foolish idea and decided to leave to do something with life. I met Reyna, and she brought back the spark I that I needed to lessen the pain of the things I did."

"I can tell on how the way you guys were dancing," Annabeth said, looking up at him.

"Yeah," he agreed.

Luke then remembers his argument with Andrew and realizes how much of an idiot he was.

"Reyna and Alison, where are you?" he asks himself, his hands in his hair from frustration.

* * *

Jean doesn't know what to do. She can't find Alison and by the looks of it, Aaron and Nick look like they're about to rip each others head off.

She searched Camp Jupiter, the Senate, Circus Maximus, etc. and can't find her anywhere. The others have done the same thing: Gwen, Percy, her mom and dad, Leo, Dakota, Bobby, Annabeth, and Grandma Zhang.

Currently, she's at Garden of Bacchus where bees happily buzz to sweet flowers, the grass is as green as it can be, the fountain flows with water, and with a fantastic view of New Rome.

"Let's think together," Nick says, clapping his hands. "It's likely that she hasn't gone out of this place since she has no clue where she's going."

"But you know very well on how muh of a risk taker she is," Jean counterparts.

"So she has to be within Camp Jupiter or New Rome," Aaron says.

"Could she be surrounding or at the border of 'Camp Jupiter' or 'New Rome'," Nick says.

"We haven't checked there," Aaron says.

"We're surround by the woods, has the woods been checked?" Nick impatiently asks.

"No, but they're gonna be checked. Come on," Jean grabs Nick's arm and pushes his along with Aaron too.

* * *

"So Greek gods exists?" Alison suspiciously asks.

"And Roman gods," Thalia adds on.

"So you're telling me there's gods, the myths are real, and heroes actually exist." She furrows her brows from concentration.

"Exactly."

"You still haven't explained the demigod thing."

"I'm a demigod," Thalia confesses.

"Yeah, and I'm the tooth fairy." Alison gets up and stretches her legs. She had a long conversation with Thalia, being in the woods and sitting on a log for a long time isn't the best place in the world.

Thalia rolls her eyes. "You don't believe me?"

"Does it look like it?" She crosses her arms.

"Give me your hand."

"What?"

"Hand," Thalia impatiently orders. Alison sighs and eventually agrees when she gives Thalia her hand. "My father Zeus. Do you know who Zeus?"

"The womanizer, player, bafoon who cheats on his wife with other women."

"I'm supervised he did zap you with lightning." Thalia looks up at the sky and then returns her attention back to Alison. Thalia concentrates and summons lightning to her palms. She waits for Alison to shriek out of pain but nothing happens. "You're supposed to scream out in pain."

"I'm a bad actress if you want that to happen," Alison confesses.

"Aren't you freaking out about the lightning thing?"

"I figured out that Jason was the one that hurted my mom and ended up doing something that caused her to leave him," she plainly confesses. "Nothing but that seems to shock me." It's true since right now she feels numb and can't feel any pain—maybe that's why Alison can't feel the shock Thalia produced.

"Your mom is Reyna?" Thalia says dumbstruck.

"Yeah?"

"Jason hasn't stopped thinking about her nonstop for ages."

"But he did something that caused her to leave." Alison takes back her hand away from Thalia's. "He screwed up! I know my mom and you probably do too, and both you and I know that she never backs down from anything until she figures out that it isn't worth fighting for it anymore. She figured out that Jason wasn't worth fight for." Her hand wildly move around as she expresses herself.

"But he loves her," Thalia pleas Alison to listen to her.

"So he shouldn't have done what he did! Have you ever been in love and ever felt like you should do whatever it takes to keep them by your side?"

Thalia bows her head down and brings her knees to her chest as she thinks about Luke. If only you knew, she wants to tell Alison. "Alison, your mom loved Jason like you had no idea. They were both inseparable. They fought through wars, heartbreaks, Jason's memory loss, and much more. At least get the facts before you start assuming things. You seem well informed on how much he loves your mom!"

"So you know what he did to her?" Alison challenges.

"He should tell you."

"Why?" her hands are up from how upset she is. "I can't stand to look at him for a second after I knew he was the one that caused my mom pain. Pain. My mom would drift off sometimes and I knew she was thinking about my dad…" she drifts off.

"Jason is your dad?" Thalia asks, connecting the dots.

"No, no, no, he can't be my dad." She holds out her arms. "The blood running through my veins can't be the mixture of him and my mom!"

"It's likely," Thalia whispers.

"It can't," Alison denies, sitting on the dirt floor as she clutches her hair from how upset she is.

"Jason and your mom lived together, and it's likely things happened between them and caused you to be born."

"I pray to Zeus that that isn't true."

"Well, you're praying to your grandfather and your talking to your aunt." Of how happy Thalia is, she pulls Alison into a hug.

* * *

Reyna is impatient and worries about Alison. My child. Where is my daughter?

For the last hour, she checked everywhere she can think of and can't find Alison. For the last hour, she fought against Jason and has denied that he is the father of Alison.

She doesn't want to admit it because Alison is her daughter and she doesn't want to share that with him, especially him.

"Then who is Alison's father?" Jason challenges.

"Why does that matter to you?"

"Because I need to know!"

"I told you that Alison isn't your daughter."

"Is she Andrew's?" he asks out of frustration.

Andrew looks at Jason and him a quizzing look as he cocks his right eyebrow. "I don't have blue eyes."

"Funny," he looks at Reyna, "I so happen to have blue eyes."

"Genetics," Reyna explains, "my father had blue eyes."

"That's a lie."

"Why?"

"You told me your father had dark eyes like yours, but they were warm when he was happy and cold as steel," Jason remembers.

Reyna thinks back:

"Jason, what are you up to?" Reyna asked him. She was at the kitchen, preparing everything she needed for enchiladas. Jason stared at nothing as he sat on the couch.

"Nothing," Jason completely lied to her face. From the corner of the room, Reyna's two dogs, Arum and Argentum growled.

"You know exactly what that means."

"I just try to think about how my mom looked like."

Reyna walked from out of the kitchen and plopped herself next to Jason. He wore light blue jean and a red t-shirt. Reyna wore light blue jeans and a mint colored wool sweater. "Tell me about her," Reyna encouraged.

Jason ran a hand through his hair and released a sigh. "According to Thalia, she looked a lot like me."

"Of course, obviously since you don't look like Jupiter."

He cracked a smile and continued, "I remember she had poofy hair and always had a bottle in her hand," he sadly said.

"That made you sad?"

"Now that I think about, it made me sad that she was a drinker."

"But you loved her?"

Jason stayed silent.

"Did you love her at one point?"

"Yes."

"Then you still love her."

"How are you so sure?"

"People that are heart broken know the true meaning about love because they went through it."

"You speak of experience," Jason interestedly said.

"In my teen years, there was his guy that made me suffer so much…" she hoped Jason would catch on.

"I said I'm sorry."

"I know but saying it doesn't hurt."

"Tell me about your dad."

"Well my dad was a general, and I remember he was away a lot because duty called. He was general under the Puerto Rican army and was heavily awarded for his brave act of courage in the battle field, but he was known as a kind man as well."

"No wonder your mom fell for him."

"He took part in the Operation El Dorado Canyon which involved terrorists and things I don't want to talk about."

"What was his name?"

"Manuel Corona," Reyna said in Spanish.

"I like it when you speak Spanish. How did he look like?"

"He was tall with the skin tone like mine, he had my eyes, but he had curly light brown hair."

Jason looked intently at Reyna and finally said, "You would look amazing with curls."

"Smooth," she sarcastically said, getting up from the couch and back to the kitchen.

"But you don't know my bloodlines," Reyna snaps back to reality.

"I know for a fact that you're Latina," Jason says.

"It's Puerto Rico and its located in Latin America!"

"I knew that!"

* * *

"We haven't found them," Percy mutters.

"I found Reyna and Jason," Annabeth speaks up. Everyone turn their eyes to where Annabeth points and sees that she's right. They're at the middle of the Praetorian Road.

* * *

Luke spots Reyna and Andrew from the hill and runs towards them.

"Reyna, are you okay?" Luke asks her.

"I'm fine, Luke," she tells him.

"Who are you?" Luke asks the blond man before him. The man is tall with a golden tan, blue eyes, and well-built.

"I'm Jason Grace, Alison's father," Jason introduces himself.

"You are not the father!" Reyna growls.

"Thalia has a brother?" Luke squeaks.

"You know her?"

"Is she here?"

"She said she was dropping by later, why?" Jason cautiously asks.

"Over here!" Dakota shouts from a distance. Reyna turns and sees a group of people behind him: Percy, Annabeth, Leo, Gwen, Bobby, Hazel, and Frank.

"Thank gods we found you guys," Franks says.

"I need Alison," Reyna answers, taking a step forward before Luke stops her.

"Not without me," Luke tells her.

"Why am I finding this so cliché?" Andrew asks.

"Because you've tried that line many times before," Luke snaps.

"I need to find Alison and you two stop snarling at each other," Reyna chides the both of them.

"That's worse than me and Kota," Bobby notices.

"We split in groups to cover more ground," Annabeth says.

"I take Reyna," Luke says.

"I go with them," Jason defiantly says, receiving a glare from Reyna.

"I go to break the tension," Andrew awkwardly says.

"Jason is not coming," Reyna says.

"It doesn't matter because I'll follow," Jason says.

"She doesn't want you here," Luke tells him.

"It doesn't matter because I'll always be there for her," he answers.

"Where were you in the last 14 years in her life?" Luke angrily asks.

"I wasn't there since she ran away from me," Jason says.

"Now you're making her sound weak," says Andrew.

"Either you guys figure it out or we step in," Hazel impatiently says. "Frank, you're on my team. Kota, Gwen, and Bobby are in another. Percy and Annabeth are another team."

"I team up with Reyna," says Jason.

"I would rather go with Luke or Andrew," Reyna says.

"Then make room for another one," Jason tells her.

"No," she refuses.

Jason's eye soften, "You're refusal are one of the things I always loved about you."

"You don't know the meaning of love, so don't use it," she snaps.

"You left me heartbroken, of course I knew about love," he answers back.

"It's either that, but maybe Piper showed you that," Reyna darkly tells him.

The people around them remain silent as Jason and Reyna stare each other down until Leo speak up, "Ouch. Jason, you got burn."

* * *

Aaron quickly walks to the woods with Jean and Nick. "You think she's here?"

"This is our only shot," Nick answers.

"Alison!" Jean shouts. "Alison! Come here! I'm worried about you!"

"Alison!" Nick joins her.

"Alison!" Aaron joins too.

"Alison!" together they shout.

* * *

"Aunt?" Alison says, confuse.

"I'm Jason's sister," Thalia explains.

"Oh," she connects the dots.

"Alison, can you do me favor?" Thalia raises an eyebrow.

"Depends."

She rolls her eyes. "Listen to what Jason has to say."

"No." Alison scrunches up her nose.

"Let him explain," she pleads.

"You truly care about Jason," Alison notices.

"My mom gave him away at the age of two, and I found him when he was 15," Thalia says.

"You were a huntress of Artemis by then?" Alison remembers Thalia telling her the story a while ago.

"Alison!" She hears shouting from a distance.

"Do you wanna go? Do you feel better?" Thalia asks.

"Yeah, but I'm still mad a Jason," she tell her.

"Alison!" The shouting gets louder.

"Come on." Thalia affectionally punches Alison's arm, and she laughs.

* * *

Piper McLean cautiously steps foot into Camp Jupiter. Truth is, Piper doesn't being here because she lost _him_ to the Romans, and he was gone when he remembered his role within the Romans.

"Here I come," she says, breathing out a sigh.

* * *

**How was it? Horrible? Did you like the aunt-and-niece scene? I'm sorry if you think Thalia is a bit out of character but for crying out loud! She's comforting a girl she doesn't know and later finds out that she actually her aunt!**

**Was the drama good? Bueno? Malo? **

**Piper. I can't wait for what she's bringing in. I guess you guys can figure it out since I dropped some hints. **

**Sorry if I didn't give each character enough screen but it's hard managing all of them, but I tried to at least mention them a little bit more than once! **

**I recommend you all listen to that *Nsync song because it fits with the chapter—but it's your choice.**

**Review! ^.^**


	16. Chapter 16

**I'm a horrible author! -.- I'm so sorry I haven't updated, because I've been busy lately. I've just had lots of homework, and I've had some problems lately that caused me to go into depression. Now, I know you don't want to hear my excuse so I'll just continue with my story.**

* * *

_"Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret."_

_-Ambrose Bierce_

* * *

Alison slowly walks out of the woods with Thalia, until Jean runs towards her. "Alice!" she squeals as a five-year-old as she tightly wraps her arms around Alison.

"A little too tight," Alison wheezes.

"Sorry," Jean apologizes.

"Are you okay?" Nick asks her.

"Yeah." She shyly shakes her head. Alison is very aware of Nick's intense eyes and it sends butterflies to her stomach. I hate Venus, she thinks.

"Hi, Thals," Aaron greets Thalia. "How come you're here?" he suspiciously asks her.

Thalia crosses her arms over her chest and gives Aaron an intense stare. "Shut it before I tell Alice interesting baby stories about you," she threatens.

"You wouldn't?" Aaron nervously gulps.

"Try me."

"That wouldn't be wise," Nick buts in.

"Everybody has been looking for you like wildfire," Jean tells Alison.

"But Jason—"

"Don't argue," Jean says as she grabs Alison's hand. "Let's go find them."

"Remember to keep that sharp tongue in check," Aaron says.

"You're not helping," Alison mutters.

From how much of a good aunt Thalia is, she gives Aaron well deserve smack in the back of the head with electric sparks escaping her fingertip.

"Ouch." He runs the back of his head.

"You're welcome."

* * *

"I will follow you," Jason sternly tells her, his blue orbs clashing against her obsidian ones. He considers to be Mr. Romantic and say something that _may_ make Reyna's heart melt, but he wisely decides not to.

Reyna takes a deep breath to avoid her anger to overcome her. "Come on, Luke and Andrew," she murmurs as she begins to walk ahead of them.

Jason watches Reyna walk away, and he follows.

* * *

Andrew sees the tension between Jason and Reyna and decides to keep his mouth shut about it. Unlike Luke, "Is he Alison's dad?" he whispers to her.

_Will you shut up for once, Luke._ "I don't want to talk about it," she tightly says.

_You don't have to talk about it if you don't have to, Reyna._ "I'm taking that as a yes," Luke says.

_She doesn't want to talk about it._ "I need to find Alison," Reyna snaps. Her jaw is clench tightly and her forehead with wrinkles from how mad she is starting to get.

"Reyna," Jason calls to her.

"Are you gonna help me or not?" She looks at Jason and Luke and increases her walking pace. Since Andrew has long legs, he easily catches up to her.

* * *

The only thing Luke wants are answers. He knows that she shouldn't have asked about who is Alison's father, while Reyna is searching for her. "Your name is Luke?" a male voice interrupts his thoughts.

"Yes. I'm guessing you're Jason."

"Yeah," Jason awkwardly says. "How has Reyna been through the years?"

Luke clears his throat and automatically feels protective over Reyna. It isn't because Jason is her past, it's because he doesn't want history to repeat. "She's been fine."

Jason notices how protective Luke gets when he mentioned Reyna's name. "Are you a Greek demigod?" He attempts to move to lighter topic.

"Yes. I'm guessing you're a Roman." Luke knows by a fact that Jason is indeed a Roman. He remembers watching him when he was possessed by Kronos. Yes, he remembers seeing Reyna, but Reyna doesn't know about this because she has never seen him in that form.

"Are you Luke Castellan?" Jason boldly asks him.

"You got a problem with that," Luke automatically snarls at him.

"Woah," Jason puts his hands up, "I just thought you were the Luke that I heard stories about."

"And what do you think of those stories? Were they entertaining for you? Does that wolf-goddess of Lupa know about that? Do you know how much anger I had towards the gods at that time period? The gods ignored their children and didn't care about them," Luke says.

"I did the right thing in the end. If you know the story, Jason, then you should know how the story ends. I had to be the hero of the prophecy so I can save the others. I realized what I did wrong. What did you realized wrong?" Luke continues on with his tone trembling from how his temper is becoming.

"I went back to the mortal world and did what I wanted in my life. I changed my life for the better. Along the way, I met the girl that you were so stupid enough to cause her so much pain to leave. Yeah, she's serious almost all the time,Mso what? Reyna is willing to stay by ones side. She's willing to put her foot down when she wants order. She has a kind heart underneath it all. She shows a tender side to her that few ever get to see. That tender side of her has a lot of qualities that many men look for her. Reyna has a good sense of humor, she can get serious when it's time to work, she's sarcastic, she can put you in your place when she has too, she pushes you, and she give complete loyalty," Luke finishes.

"You speak with admiration," Jason concludes, rubbing the sides of his chin with his thumbs. He sees Luke as competition.

"You're point is," Luke challenges.

"I'm not giving up on her." Jason walks away.

"Really? And I'll be here mending her broken heart in the end, like always!" he calls out to him.

* * *

Alison and the others walk back to Roman territory and she feels the anger begin to fizzle inside of her. From a distance, she sees a woman with a crimson dress on, and a man who has on a black suit with their arms link together.

"Mom!" Alison calls out to them as she runs towards them.

Reyna turns and her heart thumps loudly in her chest. "Alison," Reyna says while opening her arm.

Alison and Reyna hug each other tightly. "You are in so much trouble," her mom whispers in her ear. Alison laughs. She opens her eyes and sees Andrew looking down on her. He smiles at her and affectionately pats her head like a dog.

"Don't you have some ladies to claim?" she jokes with him as she releases her hug from her mom.

Andrew innocently shrugs and says, "I would've, but you're mom dragged me into it."

"Whatever makes you sleep," Reyna tells which makes Alison laugh.

Alison turns around and sees her friends coming. "Mom, I want you to meet a good friend of mine," she begins to tell her mom.

* * *

Thalia sees Reyna from a distance and remembers the constant prattling Jason did about her:

_"Hey, little brother?" she asked her brother, Jason._

_They were at New Rome together at a small coffee shop. The coffee shop had light wood floors, brick walls with portraits of Elvis Presley and other iconic music legends on the wall, a small counter with a cash register and machines behind that made coffee, and glass tables scattered across the shop with lemonade pink tabletops on them. They sat on one of those tables, but with dark wood stools._

_Jason chuckled. "I'm older than you," he reminded her._

_"But who has lived the longest," she reminded, sipping her steaming hot cup of coffee with milk._

_"True. The wrinkles on your face can tell your real age," he joked._

_Thalia bit the side of her cheek to avoid snapping at her brother. She couldn't help but think that Percy would've told her the same thing. "The wrinkles on your butt, when you were a baby, can tell a lot too," she seriously told him._

_Jason reacted by choking on the coffee that he was consuming in his throat, while Thalia quickly got out of her chair and patted his back. "Not funny," he finally spoke._

_"It's true," Thalia began in her defense, "I'm going to be the one taking care about you once you can't use the restroom anymore."_

_"That's gross." He crinkled his nose, which Thalia was sure would've made millions of girls to swoon over him._

_"How's Reyna, or better say my future sister-in-law?"_

_"She's great." Thalia noticed that Jason wasn't denying the comment she made when she joked that _Reyna_ was going _to be_ his future sister-in-law. _Is Jason willing to make that happen?_ She mentally debated with herself to press the topic, but she didn't want to ruin any plans he may have for _Reyna_ because she might tell _Annabeth_ and she'll tell Percy, and _the whole_ thing will go crashing down like wildfire_

_"Great?" Thalia teased._

_'She's fantastic," Jason said. "She does small thing like twirling her hair while she reads which drives me crazy. I love how deep she can get when we sometimes examine literature together. She still loves her jellybeans, and she gets really mad when I steal a pack from her. Yesterday, I convinced her to teach my how to braid her hair since it gave me a chance to touch her hair. I give girls now credit since they fix their hair almost everyday."_

_"Anything else?" she sarcastically asked him._

_"Well, when she sleeps, Reyna curls up into a balls and slightly puffs her cheek when she breathes. She has the habit to wake up at the crack of dawn because I guess she's already used to it since our time in the Legion. She crosses her leg when she's on her laptop. She has a loud laugh when you make her laugh hard and tends to cover her mouth, even though I keep telling her that she the most beautiful laugh I've ever heard. She's been having a thing for milk chocolate lately. Even though she won't admit it, she watches Spanish_ novelas _when I'm not around. Reyna prefers hot chocolate over coffee because that used to be a treat her dad, Manuel, used to give her when she was small," Jason said._

_"You really do love her, don't you?" Thalia asked him._

_"You have no idea," Jason said and continued to nurse his coffee._

"Hello, Reyna," Thalia begins. "Its been a while." She looks at Reyna's obsidian eyes and sees the same girl that she met many years ago. Reyna still has the same spirit like always. Unlike Jason who lost the twinkle in his eyes when Reyna left his life and the sadness she gave him instead.

"Hello, Thalia," Reyna uncomfortably said.

As much as Thalia tries to hold back her laughter, she couldn't hold it back. "I told you to call me Thals, not Thalia. I guess you haven't change," Thalia assumes.

A small smile appears on Reyna's lips. "I suppose so," she says.

Thalia does something that she hardly ever does, and she opens her arms to hug Reyna. She hugs Reyna and gives her a tight squeeze. "Have you seen him?" she asks her, knowing who she's referring to.

"Yes," Reyna answers.

"And?"

"I don't want to see him ever again."

"You don't mean that."

"I don't think he's worth the pain anymore."

* * *

From the distance, Jason sees Alison and her friends, Andrew, and Thalia. He senses Luke tense up when they start to approach them.

Jason and Luke are not on good terms right now. They had a fight while back ago about Reyna and it took a lot to keep his anger in check. He didn't want to pick up a fight because he knows it would've been a foolish thing to do. Plus, Percy once told him that Luke was one of the best fighter he has ever met; Percy and Jason are an even match when it comes down to fighting, so he knows that Luke will beat him to a pulp.

"Thalia, I didn't know you were coming?" Jason speaks as he approaches the girls.

"I couldn't miss out..." Thalia begins but drifts off as her eyes meets Luke.

"Luke," she croaks.

"Thals," Luke says.

She slowly approaches Luke with her dark blue orbs curiously searching his pale blue ones. Even though Luke's age, Thalia still sees the 14-year-old boy and remembers she traveled with him, and she remembers the tender moments they shared during those adventure for survival when they only had each other to depend on. Thalia remembers the heartbreaking moment when she was forced to fight against him at Mount Orthrys, the tears the leaked in her eyes, and the moment when she realized he wasn't her friend anymore but an enemy.

"It's been long," she manages to say, her voice beginning to ache as if she sang her heart out a while ago. She's now inches away from him that she can reach out her hand and run it through Luke's blond hair.

"Really?" he sarcastically replies to her. Their friendship always involved sarcasm, and it was the way they had it.

Thalia's eyes wells up in tears from anger, and on instinct, she slaps him across the face. Luke takes a couple of steps back as he covers his cheeks as he begins the feel the throbbing pain across his left pink cheek.

She can summon lightning, attack him, or harm him in any other ways. It's not worth the effort, she thinks.

"What's up, Luke?" she sarcastically asks him. She begins to circulate around him, their eyes on each other. "What have you been up to? How come you decide to show up?"

She feels her temper increasing by every minute passing by.

"How are things with Hermes?" Thalia knows that that subject is a tough subject for Luke. "I thought I wasn't going to see you again. I thought it was the end of Luke Castellan when he stabbed himself, when he realized he was an idiot and tried to redeem himself."

"Thalia, I can—" Luke attempts to speak, but Thalia cuts him off.

"What?" she challenges. She pauses and approaches him, the dangerous electricity following.

"Thals," Alison tries to pull Thalia's attention.

"Not now, Alice," she tells her. She returns her attention to Luke and says, "I should've listened to the Hunters the first time I met them. I refused to listen to them because I thought they were full of nonsense and didn't knew you the way I did. I should've left when I had the chance."

"You didn't leave because you found company in me," Luke says.

"And? I should've left and not bring out the monster of today. I should've left to prevent the demigods that die on the battle field to not perish from the Earth and down to Hades' realm."

"You don't mean that."

"Do I Luke? Do I?" Her blue orbs turn a shade darker as she storms off.

"Thalia!" Alison shouts.

"Just leave me alone," Thalia says and begins to break off into a run.

"Thalia!" Jason yells out.

Thalia keeps running and running. She knows that this isn't like her to run away, but she doesn't want to deal with it.

* * *

"You should probably let her cool off," a voice sweetly says. Jason and Reyna feel their hearts' slip a beat.

Jason turns and sees Piper. Piper is wearing a lavender color sweetheart neckline which flows down to her knees. Her wrists have thick gold braclets. Her chocolate-brown hair is tied into a bun with loose strands on her face. To Jason, she looks pretty but nothing in compare to Reyna.

"Hi, Jason," Piper says as she runs to his arms and gives him a fierce hug.

Reyna doesn't know why, but she doesn't like the view before her. She feels her blood slowly starting to boil and her jaw clenching. I'm not jealous, she tells herself.

Andrew sees the way Reyna is reacting and places his hand on her shoulder. She looks at him and sees both pain and jealously in them.

She doesn't want to see Piper and Jason hugging so she does what comes to mind for her—she hugs Andrew. She wraps her arms around Andrew and gives him a tight hug; Andrew doesn't know how to react but eventually wraps his arms around her waist and inhales her sweet scent.

"I feel used," he confessed to her.

"Don't be," she whispers to him.

* * *

Jason finally pulls away from Piper and sees Reyna and Andrew in an embrace. He doesn't have a problem about the hugging, but he has a problem on how they're hugging. Andrew has his arms around her waist as he rubs one of his hands against her back as Reyna leans her head against his shoulder.

"What is this?" Jason angrily approaches Andrew and Reyna.

"Why is this such importance to you?" Reyna asks as she pulls away from Andrew.

"Because I still care," Jason growls at her.

"I suggest you don't."

"You know I've always cared." Reyna sees the way Jason's blue eyes grow soft and gives her a tender look. She remember:

_Reyna has had it. She was sick of it. She was sick of all of it. She had a bad day because she came late to class, because of Jason, and was scolded in front of her classmates by the professor._

_She angrily stomped the cement sidewalk as she walked to a small coffee shop as she carried her bag in her hand and a stack of textbooks. Suddenly, she bumped into someone, which caused her to fall to the floor and books spilled on the sidewalk._

_"Son of a gun," she said under her breath, as she knelt to gather her books._

_"Rey," a male voice said that was familiar to Reyna._

_"What do you want, Grace?" She icily demanded in a tone of voice that she hasn't used since her days when she was in the legion._

_"I'm sorry I kept you in," he apologized. Earlier, Jason held her in a tight grip around her small waist as Reyna attempted to get out of bed, but she finally succeeded when she bit his arm._

_"I'm sorry that you're stupid." She gritted her teeth as she got up from her kneeling position and turned her back to him. Jason quickly grabbed her elbow and turned her to him as he placed an arm around her waist, preventing to leave him._

_"I know you don't mean that," he whispered. Reyna felt his hot breath that tickled the left side of her neck._

_"What if I do?" Reyna attempted to pull herself away, but Jason tightened his grip._

_"I know you don't. I'm sorry you got in trouble."_

_"How do you know?" She was bewildered. _

_"I went to talk to the professor after the class was over," Jason said in a hush tone._

_"You shouldn't have done that."_

_He shrugged. "I went because I know how you hate it when you go to places late."_

_Reyna smiled. Her heart began to flutter because she didn't expect Jason to go out of his way to go explain what happened to her professor. "What did upon tell him?"_

_"I told him that we were stuck because we were visiting children that have cancer in the mortal world."_

_"But we did that yesterday." It was true, Jason and Reyna went to visit children at the hospital and taught them a few words in Latin._

_"I know but we came back home like at midnight." He gave Reyna a pearly white smile, and he had a gleam in his eyes as he remembered seeing the children with grins on their faces._

_"But you should've let me go when it was time to let me go."_

_"But you were so small and innocent as a baby penguin as you slept," he blurted out._

_"No comment."_

_Jason laughed and laced his hand through hers. "I'll still care about you."_

_"I know."_

_"Where were you headed?"_

_"Coffee shop," she answered._

_"I'll buy you hot chocolate."_

"I want you to stop caring," Reyna snaps.

"Jason," Piper calls to him.

"Go to her," she says in a small voice. She feels her voice tightening in her throat as she says her word, "We were probably never meant to be."

* * *

That voice that he has longed to hear for the lasts 14 years said words that he wishes would have never left her lip, "We were probably never meant to be." Jason feels his blood growing cold and being lost in words.

"You know Venus brought us together for a reason," Jason says, his voice trembles for the first time in his life.

"I chose to come because I was now finally strong enough to see you."

"I don't believe that. I know you longed to see me as I have with you."

"Is that what you want me to say?" Reyna approaches Jason with a soft sway at her hips which causes Jason to make his heart flutter.

"You know how much I believe in honesty," he says.

"But I've been lied by you."

* * *

Thalia can literally feel the electricity pulsing in her veins. She jogging and she quicken up her pace until she can no longer breathe. She doesn't know where she is and she really doesn't care. She leans against a tree as she breathes in the air as she tries to satisfy her body from breathing.

She thinks of Luke and her breath quickens. She remembers:

_She attacked him out of anger because she was mad at him for his betrayal. She was at the Garden of Hesperides with Percy and Annabeth and was face-to-face with Luke. He tried to reason with her but it was no use._

_Thalia blinked back tears as their weapons clashed against one another._

_"Thalia," Luke pleaded in his voice. Her blue eyes met his golden/blue ones as he frequently changed eye color._

_"I don't know you! I would've done everything to help you, but you betrayed me Luke! You betrayed me and the rest of the people who actually cared for you!"_

_"Then join me," he said._

_"We won't ever be separated from each other; I joined to avenge you because the pain was so hurtful when you were taken away from me." He had tears in his eyes as he deflected a lunge._

_Thalia managed to disarm him since she twisted her spear against Backbiter which caused Luke to lose his grip, that enabled him to drop his weapon._

_"Of course, I never can win you, no matter how hard I tried I could never win." He flashed Thalia one of his boyish grins that used to make her feel all bubbly on the inside. "Can I confess you to you that I lo—" Luke said as tried to grab her spear, but on pure instinct Thalia kicked him in the gut and pushed him off the cliff._

_"Loved you. I loved you, but not anymore." Thalia then realized what she did and her hatred with suddenly filled with sadness and shock because she pushed like off the cliff._

_"I killed him," she said as she covered her mouth. I'm a murderer, she thought._

Thalia feels her heart rate beating faster than usual, her breathing becomes more frequent, she becomes nauseous as her head begins to spin, her hands feel clammy, and her throat begins to tighten as she no feel the air in her lungs.

Help me, she wants to say but she can't speak.

"I'm here," a male says as he takes her in his arms.

* * *

Luke sees from a distance as Thalia is having trouble breathing. She's having a panic attack, he thinks as he runs towards her.

He remembers the last time she had a panic attack:

_Luke and Thalia came back from a liquor store raid; even though they felt bad about raiding the liquor store, the needed to because they were broke and were starving._

_They sat at a bench at the park in Idaho as they watched children play on playgrounds. Every once in a while, the corner of Luke's eyes wandered to Thalia and he couldn't help but notice the spark that she had in her eyes because her eyes were a light blue— a sign that she was happy. _

_A small four-year-old child with blonde hair and blue eyes as he went down the slide. He heard Thalia sucked in her breath and he looked at her and her biting her bottom lip as she stared at the floor. _

_"What's wrong?"_

_"Nothing," she said, not meeting his eyes._

_"Are you sure?" he asked, concerned._

_"I'll be back," she announced as she placed her bag of chips on the bench and walked away. _

What's up with her?_ he thought. _

_He let minutes passed by and be grew impatient. He finally got up and scanned the park for Thalia. He had a gut feeling and walked towards the forest. He scanned the green leaves from the trees, and the floor that was infested with green bushes and flowers. He heard wheezing from a distance and followed the sound, and he found Thalia was sitting on a boulder as she hugged herself. _

_"Thalia!" He ran to her as he felt the branches from the bushes that marked his legs because he was wearing shorts. He climbed up the boulder and pulled Thalia into a hug. He gently rubbed her back in small circles as he pulled Thalia onto his laps._

_"I got you," he whispered in her ear. He caught the scent of clean linen from her hair, even though it was a weird scent, he was surprised because he knew Thalia shouldn't smelled like this because neither of them haven't bathed in two weeks. She leaned her head against his chest as she felt her muscles in her throat began to relax. _

_"When has this been happening?" he asked her._

_"Ever since I was small," she confessed as she breathed out a sigh. _

_"You should've told me that you suffered from panic attacks," he quietly chided her._

_Thalia chuckled. "Why? I haven't had that in a long time, and I thought I didn't have to deal with them anymore."'_

_"You were wrongly mistaken." Even though Thalia wasn't allowing herself to seen, he felt her smiling. "Did the blonde boy remind you of someone?" _

_Thalia looked at him, and she suddenly felt embarrassed as she sat on his lap, so she muttered "Sorry," and got of him._

_"You didn't answer my question," he sternly said._

_"No, the kid didn't remind me of anyone." Luke caught the drifts that she was lying to him, but he knew she wouldn't do that because they were always honest with each other._

Luke runs to her and gives her a tight embrace. Thalia attempts to push like away but Luke tighten the grip; he endures the punching, kicking, socking, and other sorts of ways of hitting as he continues hugging her. He begins to rub her back in small circles and releases. The tightness in her muscles begin to loosen and she finds herself leaning against her chest. She suddenly pushes him off as she yells, "Get away from me."

"Don't be like this, Thals."

"Only my friends call me Thals," she snaps.

"You do not mean that." He slightly squints his eyes and gives Thalia a caring look that made her completely uncomfortable.

"I was betrayed, Luke, and that hurt me." She stares at the floor to avoiding meeting his eyes.

"Thalia, I can—"

"I don't want to hear it!" She covers her ears with her hands. "I don't want to hear you! I hate you!" She runs off and leaves Luke standing there like an idiot with his mouth open as he begins to process her words.

_I hate you, _are the words that keep repeating in his mind.

* * *

Alison feels like her mouth is full of toilet paper because she doesn't know what to say. She sees the woman in front of her in the lavender dress, and she saw the look of anger her mom had when she saw him and her embracing one another.

"You had your chance, Jason," Alison finally says.

Jason turns to her. "But I didn't tell you—"

"She doesn't need to know because if you were the guy talking to her, then she knows that you something that drove me away." Reyna eyes fly open as she begin to realize something. "Did you use Alison in this twisted game?" She begins to approach him, but Andrew grabs her arms.

"I don't know—"

"Did you want my own daughter to turn against me and to be on your side? Did you just talk to her so you can tell her your side of the story so that she can be on your side and think I am the bad guy?" She demands. "Just wait until I get a hold of you." She no longer sees the regular colors, but now she sees everything red and that rarely happens only of she is extremely irate. Reyna attempt to pull away from Andrew but Percy finally steps in.

"Reyna,—"

"I don't need to talk to you, Jackson." Percy flinches.

"You know what? I'm done with you and how bad you've screwed up my life, but at the same time I thank you because that made me stronger than before." Her mother looks at her and says, "Come on, Alison, we have to go."

"You're not going anywhere with my daughter," Jason boldly says.

"I am not your daughter," Alison hisses at him. "I've tried to being your friend to you, but you messed with my mom's heart when she was younger and that really crosses the line."

"Alice,—"

"It's Alison to you, Jason." She gives Jason a hurt look as she grabs her mom's arm.

"Goodbye," she tells him, bowing down her head. A tear escapes her mother's eye.

* * *

Jason doesn't know what to do. He feels that his bones are numb and that is not a good thing. He slowly begins to see two women that he loves begin to walk away from them.

"Jason," Piper says as she hugs him. He feels his skin burning in an unpleasant way as his skin touches Piper's.

_This isn't how it's supposed to end…_

"Get away from me," he tells Piper as he gently pushes her away. He sees her eyes violently flashing eye color. "It wasn't supposed to happen the way it did and now I lost it all. I lost her love. I lost her kisses. I lost myself." He shakes his head and jog away, leaving Piper in the dust.

* * *

"What just happened?" Leo asks.

"I—I don't know," Piper croaks as she hugs herself and bites her bottom lip.

"Does Beauty Queen need a hug?" He teases in hopes to make her feel better.

"No."

His heart deflates.

* * *

"What just happened?" Frank asks.

"Piper, what happened between you and Jason that supposably drove Reyna away," Annabteh asks.

"I don't want to talk about it," she says, turning her back to them.

* * *

Reyna doesn't understand why she let a tear to escape her eye, but she hates herself for it because she thinks that it's showing a sign of weakness.

"Reyna," Andrew says, breaking her away from her thinking.

"Yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

"Better than I'll ever be."

"You're such a bad liar," he says. She looks up at him and sees him smiling down at her.

"I'll take that as a compliment," she says.

"Reyna!" She hears a male call out her name.

* * *

Jason runs and runs. He sees Reyna no where in sight and starts to worry. He starts to think that Reyna has left and this was probably the only shot he had to win her back.

He finally spots Andrew, Alison, and Reyna with a blonde dude. From a distance, the blonde looks familiar, but Jason can't place his finger on it.

The blonde turns and Jason can't believe who he's seeing.

* * *

Luke slowly walks out of the woods with his head down. He's sad that Thalia said those words to him, but she doesn't blame him.

He finally looks up and finds himself walking towards, Jason, Andrew, Alison, Reyna, and a blonde Luke has never met before. He could see the sadness on Reyna's eyes and no longer thinks of Thalia as he walks to her.

* * *

"Should we go home with Alison?" Aaron asks.

"You are in trouble," his mom chides him.

"What did I do?"

"What don't you do?" Frank mutters and receives a punch in the arm by Hazel.

"I'm going to find, Alice," Nick announces and nods his head to Jean. "It was a pleasure to meet you, even though we didn't really have time to sit down and have a good conversation."

"We'll interrogate Alison's boyfriend later," Hazel says.

"They aren't dating," Aaron mutters.

"I know how you feel," Percy says.

* * *

"Octavian?" Reyna says unsure and confuse.

"Hello," he formally says.

"It's been so long," Reyna begins.

"I'm sorry," he blurts out.

"What?"

"I'm sorry," he repeats. She remembers:

_Reyna walked out of the apartment complex with her luggage. She had to fight down the tears. _

_She was now at the borderline of New Rome and she saw a blonde that started at her from top of a hill. She was mistaken because the blonde walked down the hill and she saw his skinny frame._

_"What are you doing with that?" Octavian asked as he pointed at the luggage. "Was normal too much to handle?" He sneered._

_"I am in no mood to be speaken in this way," she icily said to him._

_Octavian shrugged his thin shoulders as he held his hands up in a giving up way. "I just assumed that you couldn't handle living this type of life, I thought you were fleeing from here."_

_"It's for other things."_

_"Grace?"_

_"It takes no matter to you."_

_Octavian laughed. "You thought that boy was different and you were sadly mistaken. The blood in his vein has Jupiter written all over them. You were a toy to him, and a toy eventually rips. Did you honestly think he was different from all the children of Jupiter that have come before him?"_

_"You find pleasure in this, don't you?"_

_"To be honest, I do. I thought you weren't stupid enough and know not to fall for someone like that son of Jupiter. What did that boy do? Was he sucking faces with someone else? Did he just break up with you?" _

_"Who said it was him?"_

_"If I brought those dogs of yours, they would have ratted you out quite some time ago."_

_"The dogs aren't here!" It was true, the areas Reyna mainly went were restricted from animal, so her dogs couldn't follow her, so they went back to Camp Jupiter and occasionally visited her._

_"Those pile of junks of 'animals' are hardly to any use at all."_

_"Do you value your life? Do not speak badly of my dogs, is that understood?"_

_"You're threats no longer scare me. The Roman Law protects me and you will be charged with murder. I wonder if you'll be hung, your head chopped of, or rather be stuck in a cell until it rots?"_

_"Typical Octavian," a smirk appeared on her lips, "that hides behind someone, but in this, he hides behind the 'law' and its rather pathetic."_

_"You were a rather lousy praetor if you asked me." He narrowed his icy blue eyes against Reyna's dark ones._

_"And you were a rather lousy little snake that thirsts for blood," she said disgusted._

_"I simply wanted to give the Romans on what they wanted."_

_"They were in pure rage, and a praetor's job was to calm them down and not make them think in rage because they thirst of blood in that mood."_

_"The Greeks are disgusting little vermons that don't deserve to live."_

_"Still the little snake as always." Reyna grabbed her luggage and turned to walk away._

_"Have pain healing that stupid heart of yours over Grace, and don't worry, no one won't notice you'll be gone. Grace is probably with a beautiful woman right now!" He called out._

_The tears fell._

"You're such a snake," Reyna says.

"My behavior was very rude and once I heard upon your arrival I came to attempt to apologize to you."

"I don't believe you." She icily laughs at him.

"Then do," he says.

"Reyna!" Luke says as he jogs towards her.

"What happened to Thalia?" Alison asks him.

Luke briefly shows sadness in his eyes, but then turns to anger as he turns to Octavian.

"Who are you?" Luke demands.

* * *

The man before Luke gulps and says, "My name is Octavian."

"Was he bothering you?" He asks Reyna.

"No," Reyna says in a serious tone. "But he was just leaving."

Luke carefully examines Reyna's body language and he sees frustration. He has a good feeling that she and Octavian were arguing.

He looks to Andrew who confirms it when he nods his head.

* * *

Reyna looks from left to right as she examines both Octavian and Luke. Both of them look-alike to one another. They both have blonde hair, blue eyes, tall, etc. The only difference Reyna can see is their body type where as Luke is muscular and Octavian is thin.

"Octavian, I don't believe you're being sincere," Reyna says.

"I really am," he says.

"Why do you feel the need to apologize?" She interrogates him.

"Something called guilt," Alison says.

"Like she said, I felt guilt afterwards I told you what I said when you packed up you're bag. As I aged, I began to realizes how much of a jerk I was and I felt miserable for a short period of time."

"Is this the first time you're apologizing?"

"Yes. Don't hurt my pride than to what already is and accept my apology."

"We won't have any of this type of silly business, correct?" She eyes him carefully to watch any sign of hesitation.

"No." He tense body relaxes, and Reyna finally realizes that he means it.

"Very well, I accept it."

Seconds later, Jason appears and Reyna is starting to get dizzy by a lot of blondes she has seen today.

"Where were you planning on going?" Jason demands.

"Away from you," she snaps and turns to leave.

"You will not." He grabs her wrist.

"Leave her alone," Alison says in a dark voice. Reyna is just as suprise as Jason when he hears the tone Alison has. "You have no right to go touch her like that. What are you going to do? Are you going to force her stay here as a captive? Why can't you understand that she doesn't want you anymore, Jason? She moved on and you're just there and trying to pull her back in."

"I know your mother feels the same way—"

"Reyna would've responded to you the way you wanted a long time ago," Andrew speaks up.

"She's just still angry—"

"Dude, you messed up," Luke sympathetically says to Jason.

"You think I don't realize that?" Jason clenches his jaws.

"He's to hardheaded to realize that," Reyna says. She takes back her wrist after she yanks it out of his grip.

Octavian awkwardly coughs. Jason turns to Octavian. "Jason," Octavian awkwardly says, "lets go grab a cup of wine at the bar," he suggests.

"I'm not going anywhere, Octavian."

"Don't be absurd, Grace. I see you haven't charged one bit in that attitude of yours."

"I have changed. I turned my life around, and I'm trying to get Reyna to at least listen to me."

"But she doesn't want to," Luke says.

"Can we go? I don't want to be here anymore," Alison says.

"We'll do," Andrew says, grabbing Reyna's hand and takes her away. She isn't sure what she feels exactly when Andrew grabs her hand, but she feels something nice.

"Go be with Piper," Reyna says.

"I can explain the whole situation," Jason begins.

"Goodbye, Octavian. Goodbye, Jason Grace," Reyna says.

* * *

Alison can clearly see Jason's heart break when he witness the moment Andrew grabs her mom's hand. Normally, she would've comfort him, but he doesn't deserve it.

She sees Jason taking a step forward to follow her mom, but Luke stops him by placing a hand on his shoulder. "Don't," Luke warns. "You've hurt her enough."

"Can we go home?" Alison asks.

"Sure thing, squirt."

"Alice, at least talk some sense with your—"

"And be a reason on why my mom will be foolish enough to take you back? You know what, I hope my mom will someday walk down the aisle and it isn't towards you." She sees how hurtful the comment is in Jason's eyes, but she once again doesn't care.

Together, Luke and Alison leave.

* * *

Minutes pass as Jason stands motionless.

"You should follow," Octavian suggests.

"What?" He isn't sure if he heard Octavian right.

"Did I stutter or did those ears of yours suddenly become too big for that head of yours? It's obvious that you're the reason for her pain. Did you catch doing something with that siren?" He refers to Piper.

Jason doesn't bother to correct Octavian and his comment about Piper. "She doesn't want me to follow her."

"And? You give up? Women don't know what the Pluto they want when they're upset. Go after Reyna and make her fall for you. If you asks me, I can see that she still has feelings for you. By the way, who was that girl?"

"Her name is Alison and she is my daughter, and Reyna is her mother."

Octavian's eyes fly open from shock. "Did I insult a pregnant woman?"

"What?" Jason asks, confuse.

"Nothing," Octavian quickly replies.

"I'm going after her," Jason says and begins to jog away but stops. "Octavian, you're not such a jerk as you use to be."

"And you're not as air headed like you used to be." He smiles. "I expect a full report afterwards."

Jason smiles and returns to jogging.

* * *

Nick is already standing in front of Reyna's car when Reyna and Andrew arrive. "Hey, have you seen—" he stops and looks at his uncle's and Reyna's hands.

"Sorry," she mutters as she lets go of Andrew's hand. Seconds later, Alison and Luke arrive.

"How are you feeling?" Nick asks Alison.

"I'm okay," she sadly says. "Where are Jean and Aaron?"

"They stayed with their parents," he answers.

"Oh. Need a ride home?" She cheekily asks him.

"Ladies first," Nick says as he opens the door for her.

"Why thank you kind sir," Alison sarcastically says as she enters the car.

"Team Nilson," Andrew mutters to Luke.

"There is no team," Luke snaps.

"She's gonna have to date eventually," Andrew mutters as he enters the car with Luke.

* * *

Jason patiently waits for them to starts the car and he runs towards him and follows Reyna's car.

"You're the one that got away, and I'm not letting that happen again," he says as he drives off.

* * *

**I know Piper isn't really mentioned, but she will be mentioned more in the next chapter. This chapter was more or less of a warmup to what'll happen next…**


	17. Chapter 17

_"Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them."  
-Bruce Lee_

* * *

"Stop," Alison says between laughs as Nick pokes the side of her belly.

"I would consider that but no," Nick answers and continues to poke her. Alison continues to laugh until she meets Nick's eyes. His chocolate-brown hair is slightly covering his gray eyes as he's displaying a boyish grin on his thin lips.

She stops laughing and looks into his eyes. His orbs remind Alison of the clear blue waters that she used to see when she was younger when she used to go to the beach with Luke and her mom. He blinks once more, and his eye color changes to a light bluish-greenish color with a dark brown ring around it.

"Woah," she says in awe.

"What?" he asks with concern in his voice as he furrows his eyebrows together.

"Your eyes changed from gray to this bluish-greenish color," she blurts out as she feels her cheeks reddening.

"Mine? Have you seen yours? When you're really happy, like right now, their a light blue shade; when you're mad they're an intense blue that almost look violet; when you're like super mad they turned really dark. Remember when we feel into the pool together? Your eyes were a light green."

"Oh," Alison says. She doesn't know how to respond on what Nick said.

"Sorry if that made you uncomfortable." He rubs the back of his head.

"It's fine," Alison assures.

"You guys, this is gross," Andrew says from the front seat.

"I'm pretty sure you've done worse," Alison says as she sticks out her tongue.

"You won this round," says Andrew.

"Papa Luke is taking over," Luke says as he's sitting in the backseat next to Nick. He looks at Nick and then sends a smirk to Alison who is giving him a questioning look.

"Have I ever told you the story of the time Alison went to the bathroom inside the pool?" Luke innocently asks Nick.

"No, he hasn't heard that story nor will he ever." She glares at Luke, but he shrugs it off and continues on.

"Do you want to hear the story?" he asks Nick.

Nick turns to Alison and give her a sympathetic smile as he says, "The temptation is too much to resist."

"Have I told you the time Luke lost horribly against my mother in an arm wrestling match?"

Andrew begins to laugh uncontrollably as Luke begins to become as red as a red rose.

"That story is actually a fantastic one," Reyna finally comments. "Alison, dear, would you mind telling that beautiful, victorious story?"

"Surely, Mother," Alison says in a British accent. She feels Nick grabbing her hand, and the weird part is that she doesn't pull away, and she squeezes the warm hand.

* * *

"The story is quite awesome if you ask me," Alison begins.

Reyna zones out as she thinks about the story of her life. She thought that after the war everything was going to become normal. Reyna believed that she would spend the last few days of her life at New Rome but was terribly wrong about the events that caused her to leave. As how sappy as it sounds, she had small hope to spend her days with Jason.

She begins to scold herself for thinking that way. Just by thinking of him, he brings back many memories. She remember the first time they met, the first time she ever trusted him, the first time she held his hand, and other tender moments that led to what they once had.

But he screwed up. She told him that she wasn't going to put up with any of that type of nonsense, but he still chose to play her.

* * *

Piper sits on the green grass, not caring that her dress will probably have splotches of green once she gets up and sighs.

"He's going after her isn't he?" she asks no one in particular. Her tone is sad and sounds like she's going to burst into tears.

She looks around and sees a dandelion and picks it up. She smiles. She remembers:

_"Jason, where are we going?" She looked down at their entwined hands._

_It was past midnight and Piper couldn't fall asleep due to the fact that Jason asked her to be his girlfriend during dinner. She remembered how flushed her cheeks became and how her siblings started to exchange money to one another from behind her back. They roasted marshmallows and sang songs together as they held hands as he walked her back to her cabin and placed a perfect kiss on her thin lips._

_Anyways, Piper couldn't sleep so she decided to go for a walk and found Jason leaning against a tree so Jason grabbed her hand and led her to an unknown destination._

_Even thought it was past midnight, it was still pitch black outside as crickets chirped and nymphs sang. Her kaleidoscope eyes looked forward and saw that Jason was leading her to the lake._

_"We aren't going to take a midnight swim, right?" she asked._

_"I'm not sure," he mysteriously answered her._

_They took off their shoes and sat at the width of the end of the dock as they dipped their feet in the cold water._

_It was when she realized that fireflies flew from across the lake. "Look." She pointed._

_"It looks nice," he said. They talked about light topics like how the quest went, what the quest of the seven would be like, and other things._

_"Do you remember anyone from your camp?" She was afraid to ask because she wasn't ready to hear that he had someone waiting for him._

_"Yeah," he said, wistfully._

_"Like who?"_

_"Very close people to me," said Jason._

_"But–" she began._

_"Just friends," he said. In her gut, she knew he was lying to her but bit her lip to avoid a whimper._

_"It's getting late," Jason said, breaking the awkward silence between them._

_"Yeah," Piper said as she got up._

_As they walked back to camp, Jason picked up something from the ground. "Here." He gave her a dandelion. _

_"Thanks," she said._

_"Make a wish."_

_She nodded and blew into the dandelion as the dandelion snow floated around them as then finally floated to the ground._

_She wished for Jason and her to always be together._

Sadly, Piper's wish was true for a short time and was taken away when Jason decided to return to Reyna.

She holds the stem of dandelion with her thumb and index finger as she slowly rotates the dandelion.

* * *

Hazel feels bad for Piper. She knows that Piper loves Jason, but Jason doesn't love her.

She hesitantly steps forward and approaches Piper and places a hand on her shoulder.

"It's hard loving someone who doesn't love you," Piper says, looking lost as she continues to look at the dandelion.

"Of course he loves you," she assures.

"He loves me as a friend and only that."

* * *

_He only loves me as a friend and only that, _Percy thinks. He thinks about Calypso and thinks of the time that he once loved her. Yes, he sometimes finds himself thinking about her and wonders if she thinks about him. He knows he shouldn't think about Calypso because he has Annabeth.

He feels guilty because he sometimes thinks about how life would've been if he would've stayed at the island with her.

"It'll be alright, Pipes," Percy says, smiling.

"It hurts more because I'm the daughter of _Aphrodite,"_ Piper says as she emphasizes _"Aphrodite." _She wraps her arm around her chest as she curls up into a ball.

"But you knew—" Percy begins.

"What? I knew what? I only knew that he had feelings for her but not him loving her; he loved her after he left me!" she yells at him.

"Piper, calm down," Annabeth says.

"Maybe you should calm down when your around Luke," Piper splats out with no regret in her voice as she gets up and walks away.

* * *

Annabeth feels her throat becoming dry when she hears Piper.

She doesn't have feelings for Luke. She _had_ feelings for him but not anymore.

_Do I?_ Annabeth asks herself.

* * *

Right now, Aaron feels like he's in a book with tons of drama.

He feels bad for Piper because he has seen Piper trying to get Jason's attention when he was smaller.

The question for him: What the Pluto does Alison's mom mean when she said Jason should go back to Piper?

It drove her away, Aaron thinks.

He makes a mental note to start thinking like Sherlock Holmes and would make Jean be his sidekick—Watson.

His mind drifts to Alison. His blood slightly boils as he thinks about Nick and her being together. From what he can gather, Nick has a girlfriend whom Alison isn't fond of. Aaron finds it to be wrong that Nick is wooing her since he has a girlfriend.

He just hopes that Nick doesn't try to make Alison his because he wants Alison his.

_It's hard loving someone who doesn't love you,_ he thinks of Piper's word.

"I know how you feel," he quietly whispers to himself. He mentally starts to kick himself because he's falling for a girl whom he met today.

* * *

He sees the way Alison is laughing as she tells the tale of Luke horribly losing against her mother. He sees her pearly white teeth and the small dimples at the corners of her lips.

Secretly, he always has had a crush on her that grew more and more as they got older. He remembers:

_It was the second week of school for Nick when he was in kindergarten._

_He sat on the color rug with a group of friends around them as they talked about Teenage Ninja Turtles, Spider-Man, Superman, Hulk, and other heroes._

_The classroom was painted a bright orange with rainbows and happy suns were painted on the walls. Some finger-painting paintings hung on the walls. From where Nick sat, ahead of him hung the letters of the alphabet with the white board below it. Small round tables were scattered across the room as working stations for students._

_The door opened and it revealed a girl his age with black hair and big dark blue eyes as she held her mother's hand who had black hair tied into a braid. The girl wore a dark purple skirt with a white sheer shirt with colorful flower designs with her hair tied into a ponytail as loose strands were at the sides of her porcelain skin. Her mom wore a beige knee-length skirt with a white, long-sleeve, silk dress shirt was neatly tucked in the shirt. _

_The mother released her daughter's hand and walked to the teacher, Ms. Ming. Ms. Ming was a petite Asian woman with short black hair and had a laid-back style because she wore regular jeans and a t-shirt of a band that he wasn't familiar with._

_The girl looked around as she took in her surroundings, and her eyes finally met his. His heart fluttered and smiled her but no smile was returned back._

He remembers how uncomfortable Alison was when Ms. Ming introduced her to the class. He wanted to introduce himself, but Alexis beaten him because she introduced herself to her.

He wonders if Alison has ever figure out that Nick was in her kindergarten class. He wonders if she knows that he has had a crush on her for a long time but kept it as a secret because he wasn't sure if she felt something for him.

He tried forgetting about her with Mackenzie:

_"Hey, Kenzie," Nick greeted as he waited for her at her locker._

_"Hi," Mackenzie said, smiling from ear-to-ear. She had a strap of her black Jansport slung over her shoulder as she wore green high-top sneakers, beige pants, and a bright orange short-sleeve shirt over a white shirt._

_"How are you?" he asked._

_He heard laughter becoming louder as he heard footsteps. He looked and saw Alison and Alexis. Alexis wore black boots, dark blue jeans, a flower print shirt, and a dark green cardigan as her firetruck hair was down as it displayed wild curls. Alison wore a white, with baby blue slippers, that had a scooping neckline, cut-out designs of flowers at the hem of the dress that fell to her knees and around the neckline, and a spandex belt that was already built in the dress._

_Alison hugged her textbooks to her chest as she laughed along with Alexis. Nick couldn't help but think that she looked innocent._

_"That boy was mentally eating you up!" Alexis squealed._

_"He was not," Alison said, shaking her head. His blood began to boil._

_"I should dare you to wear more dresses." Alexis gave her best friend a victorious grin._

_"I should dare you to wear more dresses," Alison mimicked. She received a playful punch in the arm._

_They continued walking and didn't notice that Nick and Mackenzie were looking at them._

_He turned back to Mackenzie and saw that she had a face full of envy towards the two girls. She looked at Nick and quickly wiped off that face._

_"Fine," she said, continuing their conversation._

_"Listen, do you want to go out or something?" he asked._

_Her light-brown eyes brightened, and she smiled. "I thought you never ask."_

Everything was going great between them, but Mackenzie became very possessive over him when other girls were around him.

Alexis came in the picture and it was a huge suprise to him:

_"How come you don't hang out with Alison anymore?" he asked Alexis as they waited for Mackenzie to get out of the bathroom._

_"I don't know what you're talking about," Alexis said as she avoided to look at him. She wore a mustard color, knee-length dress that had a v-line as the neckline._

_"I know you do. You and her used to be best friends since kindergarten and that changed last year when you began to hang out with Mackenzie."_

_"Then how come you know her name and how our relationship was?" she asked as she finally turned the tables on him._

_"I've known both of you since kindergarten."_

_Her green eyes popped open. "What are you a stalker?"_

_"No, I'm just someone that notices things. So, tell me, why don't you talk to her anymore?"_

_"It's none of your business."_

_"Well, you are hanging put with my girlfriend so that give me the right to know."_

_"It's not simple."_

_"I have the time to listen."_

_Alexis sighed as closed her eyes and twirled a stand of her hair with her right index finger._

_"I'm done," Mackenzie said as she walked put of the bathroom. She wore a sleeveless silk blouse that had a collor, black shorts that were very short for her frame, her hair tied into a messy bun, and bright red lipstick on her thin lips._

_Her light eyes averted from Nick to Alexis as she curiously looked at them with her thin eyebrows scrunched together. "Something wrong?" she asked, concerned._

_"Nothing," Alexis said._

_"Nick?"_

_Nick smiled. "Nothing is wrong," he lied._

Time continued and Nick found out that Mackenzie and Alexis bullied her:

_"Why do you guy bully her?" Nick demanded. He was angry at them, but he was trying to control his anger._

_"We're just messing around," Mackenzie said in a cheerful voice. She wore flower print leggings and a v-neck shirt under with black combat boots._

_"That's not messing around," he said._

_"It's nothing bad," Alexis assured._

_"Are you crazy? Did you drop some of those brain cells on the way over here?" He insulted her._

_"Babe, we're just messing with her," Mackenzie said. _

_"Nick, why do you seem so protective about it?" Alexis asked._

_"What do you mean?" _

_"Don't be silly, Alex," Mackenzie said as she entwined her hand wih her boyfriend's._

_Nick looked at Alexis and saw suspicion in her green eyes. He quickly looked away and awkwardly cleared his throat. "Can we go?" he asked._

_"Let's go," Alexis said, not taking her eyes off Nick._

He releases a sigh and thankfully sees that Alison doesn't notice his sad expression.

Earlier, he realized that Mackenzie is a mistake and admits that to himself. He remembers going to her house, before he went to the mall with his uncle, and breaking up with her. She asked him, while crying, why, but he told her that he doesn't feel the same way about her anymore; he thought it was a better excuse than to say that he likes someone else.

"I sound like such a dweeb," he says out loud.

"What?" Alison asks him.

"I'm just thinking," Nick says.

"About?"

"Nothing in particular."

"Okay."

_I'm just thinking on the possibility on the chance of me being with you,_ he thinks.

He knows that Alison will never be a mistake.

* * *

From Andrew's side mirror, he can see Alison and Nick. He smiles as he starts to imagine on how Reyna will react if she sees the way Nick is looking at her daughter. His eyes light up and shows a genuine smile that only few can achieve.

Speaking of Reyna, he looks to his left and sees Reyna staring at the road as she drives and the way her eyebrows are furrow together as she looks to be deep in thought about things.

He wonders what she's thinking about. He wonders if she's thinking about Jason and that makes his heart deflate. He knows that she feels something for Jason, but he isn't sure if she loves him. Love is a strong word and he knows that.

He never has said those three little words that many women long to hear. He has dated in the past, but he never has felt a strong passion for someone until Reyna came around.

Andrew remembers the how much they hated each other and how much he loved getting on her nerves and still do.

He wonders if Reyna will ever learn to love again. Andrew just hopes that he'll be the guy that she'll love.

* * *

Luke sees the stupid smile Andrew has on his face as he looks at Reyna. He sees that Reyna has her eyes on the road and is mentally grateful for that. He doesn't know how he will react if he sees her looking at someone with a loving look. All he knows is that he'll have a darn bad heartache and just thinking about it makes his heart ache.

He thinks of Thalia and feels hurt. He remembers seeing the hatred in her deep blue eyes and the tears that fell from her eyes, thanks to him. He remembers how much he hurt Thalia when they fought at Mount Orthrys. His heart was torn to pieces and was torn again by Annabeth.

He loved Annabeth, but his first love will always be Thalia because she showed him that it was okay to be weak. Annabeth taught him that it was okay for him to be himself. He remembers how his heart broke more when Annabeth told him that she didn't love him when he was dying.

His heart was torn, twice.

He hopes that Reyna won't be the same.

Reyna is a combination of both Annabeth and Thalia but with a twist of her own that makes her a thousand times better than Annabeth and Thalia will probably ever be.

He's surprise that Reyna hasn't ask on how he met Annabeth. When the time comes, he will tell her the whole truth because he would rather tell her the whole truth than for someone else to tell her and lose her forever. He isn't sure on how Reyna will react. He figures that Reyna will be furious with him because he didn't tell her earlier, but she can never be mad at him for long periods of time because she misses him like he misses her:

_Luke walked to the park as he sulked. He was behaving this way because Reyna was upset with him because he stood her up with Alison, who was five at the time, because he had work. It wasn't the first time he stood her up so he saw Reyna's side, but she had stood him up too so he didn't understand why she really upset about it._

_He stood in front of the playground as he saw children running around like wild animals. The playground was large with red slides, orange and blue swing sets, black monkey bars, and a large bridge that connected two parts of the playground with the floor made of sand._

_Children laughed and the sound itself made Luke's heart ache because he missed Alison's laughter._

_By the swing set, he saw Alison with her long black hair tied into a ponytail, a red long-sleeved shirt under a jean overall dress with black shoes as she nervously looked around as she bit her thumb. He slowly walked towards Alison and her eyes lit up when she saw him._

_"Luke!" she squealed._

_"Hey, baby girl," he said as he carried Alison into his arms. "Where's momma?" he asked her. Her stubby index finger pointed at the corner of the playground where Reyna sat on the floor with a book on her lap. She wore army color cargo pants, an orange tank top, beige sandals, and hair that was tied up in a high ponytail. In reality, Luke was surprised that he saw Reyna wearing laid-back clothing._

_"How come you look lost?" Luke asked, after he cleared his throat._

_"I don't know how to use the swing," Alison sadly confessed. Her small head was bowed down from how ashamed she was._

_"Don't be embarrassed," Luke told her. "Get on the swing, I'll teach you." Alison did what she was told and after a few instructions from Luke, she could swing by herself but she couldn't go high as much as she wanted. Luke took it upon himself and pushed her, and Alison gigged from how high she was going._

_In the next half an hour, Luke pushed Alison on the swing and didn't noticed the person next to him. He finally looked to his side and saw Reyna with her arms crossed around her chest and with a serious expression that was written on her face. Luke knew that expression and it meant one thing: disappointment._

_"How come your here?" she icily asked him._

_"I came here for a walk," he said._

_"Then how come you came to Alison?" _

_Luke's eyes met her eyes as he continued to push Alison. "She looked lost, and her mother was reading a book that she seemed to be very interested in because she didn't noticed that someone was swinging her on the swing set half and hour later."_

_Reyna's cheeks slightly paled from embarrassment but quickly recovered. "I promised I would take her to the park, and I was true to my word."_

_Like ignored her and asked, "What were you reading?"_

_"I was reading a book about the boat, Titanic."_

_Luke smiled and couldn't help but tease. "Are you sure about the book or the romance?" _

_A small smile appeared on her serious face as she nudged Luke with her shoulder. "You should've came with the truth."_

_"I know," he groaned. He looked at her and saw a wistful look across her face. "Are you okay?" _

_She quickly snapped out of it as she whispered, "Just like him."_

_"What?" Luke asked, not sure what was happening._

_"You're just a person that I can't get mad at for a long period of time."_

_"Does someone have a sweet spot for the Castellan?" he teased her once more._

_"I suppose, if that makes you sleep tonight." _

_"I'll sleep like a baby tonight, trust me."_

_"You in the mood for Chinese food?" _

_"Yeah, but I'll buy the food since it's the least I can do for missing out today."_

_"Fine. Luke?"_

_"Yeah?"_

_"Can you try to be honest with me from now on?" she asked in a vulnerable voice that Luke has ever heard from her._

_"Okay," Luke said._

He sighs. He wishes that he could've told her earlier. That's a mistake that he made. He realizes that mistake and openly admits that, but he hopes that Reyna will forgive him.

Three times is the charm, right?

* * *

Jason drives from a distance and realizes that he's basically stalking Reyna's car. He knows when Reyna sees him at her front door she's going to be very irate with him; she isn't the only one who will be irate.

She had his child and didn't bother to tell him. He lost precious memories that he can never get with Alison. He never saw her talk for the first time. He never saw her walk.

Just thinking about it makes his eyes slightly water.

He thinks about the dream he told Alison about, the one about Reyna holding a newborn. The male voice that asked if he could hold the baby, Alison, he's now assuming, may have been Luke because the voice sounds exactly like Luke.

Jason wishes that he can reverse time and change what he did. It's a mistake that he knows hurt Reyna and wishes Reyna can forgive him.

* * *

Jean sees how deep in thought Aaron is and can't help but smile. "Don't think to much," she says.

"Shut up," he says. They're both standing away from Piper and their parents because the drama reminds them of high school.

"How come your deep in thought?"

"I'm just thinking."

Jean rolls her eyes. "I know that but about what?"

"Be my Watson while I be Sherlock Holmes," Aaron says.

"What?" Her cheeks are slightly pink because she interpret what Aaron said differently than what he actually meant.

"Let's compare notes. Do you know what Jason did that drove Alison's mom away?" Aaron asks in a low whisper.

"No, but it has to be something hard because Alison has said in the past that her mother is very calm and hardly shows any anger."

"Judging from how upset she was, it had to be about Jason and Piper."

"Remember when she said to Jason to go to Piper?"

"Then we can conclude they had a romantic past and also how Piper is so depressed about it."

"Do we have to get the scoop from our parents?" asks Jean.

Aarons sea-green eyes looks at his parents as they see them attempting to comfort Piper. "But not now," he says.

Jean nods and sees Dakota, Bobby, and Gwen. "Can't we ask them?"

"Nice job, Watson," Aaron says smiling. Jean returns the smile but ends up slapping him in the back of the head.

* * *

"Men don't like women crying for no pathetic reason," Grandma Zhang says.

"Piper, what did you mean?" Percy asks, nervously.

"About what?" She clears her throat as she sniffles.

"Never mind," Percy says, looking away.

"No more tears and stand up like a soldier," Grandma Zhang says.

"I can't because I'm just a stupid daughter of Aphrodite," says Piper.

"So just because of your heritage, you refuse to stand up like a soldier? Look at Chase and you see that she did more than just being a bookworm at the library. Hazel stood up to the plate and led while Jason and Percy would bicker." Her cane pounds against the grass.

"I guess your right," Piper says.

* * *

Leo's feels horrible for Piper and doesn't like seeing her cry. He's actually a bit curious on what she meant about Annabeth but decides that it's wise to not ask right now.

"I'll take you home, Beauty Queen," Leo says as he grabs her arm. Piper pulls her arm away.

"No, I can go home by myself."

"Yeah, but I need a ride, and you'll be my driver to take me."

"Can't you build a car?"

"Do you see any metal around?" Leo challenges, raising an eyebrow.

"Fine."

Piper and Leo say their goodbyes and they leave.

_You deserve someone who can treat you better,_ Leo thinks. _What the Pluto are you talking about? Dakota probably slipped wine into your drink._

* * *

From outside, Alison can see raining starting to drizzle against the glass window. It's quiet right now.

She sees her mom being more quiet than usual.

"Who is gonna be dropped off first?" she asked.

"I don't know," Reyna says.

"But my car is parked at Reyna's place," Luke says.

"So I guess you drop us both off at your house," Andrew says.

Reyna nods and returns her eyes on the road.

She looks at her mom from the rear mirror and their eyes meet and the same emotion reflects one another: sadness.

* * *

It kills Andrew that he sees Reyna looking sad. The car finally stops in front of her house, and he sighs.

"Call me of you don't feel okay," he tells her.

"You think—" Reyna begins.

"Yeah, I know you can take care of yourself but it doesn't hurt for other to take care of you," Andrew cuts her off as he gets out of the car and opens her door. "You just need to give someone the chance," he says, grabbing her hand to help her out of the car.

"I don't know what to say to that."

He pulls her into a hug, and Reyna freezes but soon returns the hug as Andrew's grip tightens. "A mistake happens for a reason, but the mistake can be forgive but never forgotten."

* * *

Andrew finally releases Reyna and walks to his car as he waits for Nick. "The same goes for me," Luke says.

"But I don't—" Reyna begins.

He grabs her chin and tilts her head and places a kiss on her forehead. "You never shut up, do you?"

"I guess not." She feels the tingling sensation on her forehead.

They finally say their goodbyes and separate ways. As Luke walks to his car, he wonders about the kiss and wonders what would've happened if he kissed her.

* * *

"Your mom seems to be taking it hard," Nick says.

"Poor thing," Alison says.

"How are you feeling?" he asks.

"Fine."

Nick raises an eyebrow and gives her a look that he doesn't believe her. "I bet Jean can lie better than you."

She laughs. "I just have a lot to process."

"Like?"

"That I've basically been hanging out with my father that I had no clue actually was." _Also add in the fact that I'm apparently a legacy of some kind if my mom and Jason are demigods. _

"You're funny."He gets out of the car and grabs her hand as he helps her out. She can't help but feel fuzzy on the inside as her hand is inbetween Nick's.

"So I have been told."

"Bye." Nick releases her hand and now grabs her waist to pull her into a hug. Alison smiles and wraps her arms around his neck. She's mentally thankful that her mother isn't seeing her in this type of embrace.

He slightly pulls away from her and puts a strand of hair behind her ear since its on her forehead. His hand is still on her cheek as their eyes meet. He smiles and pecks her on the corner of her lip.

"Ouch," he says.

"What's wrong?" she asks.

"You shocked me, literally." He laughs.

"Sorry."

"It's fine." He goes in for another peck on the other side of her lip and goes off.

"What the heck happened?" She still feels the sensation on the corner of her lips.

* * *

Jason's blood boils as he sees Andrew and Luke showing affection to Reyna. He's surprise that Reyna is actually allowing this because not even Jason wasn't allowed to do that only after they started dating.

Andrew and Luke finally leave, and Alison and Reyna go inside.

He parks at her driveway and gets out of the car. It looks very much like the White House but without the entrance of the three poles. The entrance is just a simple porch.

"Here I go," he says and knocks on the door.

* * *

"I'm going to bed," Alison announces.

"Alright, I love you," Reyna says. It's rare for her to say those words, but she never hesitates to say that to her daughter.

"Love you too," she says and heads upstairs.

Reyna leans against the beige wall and sighs until she hears a knock on the door. "Who can it be at this time of the hour?" she asks.

She opens the door and sees Jason. She quickly tries to slam the door, but Jason prevents the door to close by putting his foot in between it. "Reyna, hear me out," he pleads.

"Leave me alone." She manages to close the door.

"I'm not leaving your doorsteps until I probably talk to you," he says.

She ignores him and heads up the stairs.

She takes off her heals and lays on her bed.

"After all these years, you came back. I was happy, and when you came, my world went crashing down," she whispers to herself, letting darkness take over her.

She wakes up as she hears thunder rumbling from outside. She looks at the clock and sees that it's past midnight. Reyna sits up and heads downstairs. She opens the door and sees Jason's sleeping figure against on the floor.

He looks innocent. "I'm sorry," he whispers in his dream. He starts to shiver, and Reyna grabs a blanket from her room and drapes it on top of Jason's sleeping figure.

She quietly shuts the door. "It's too late to be sorry," she says.

* * *

Gwen and Dakota walk hand-in-hand to Dakota's car. "I'm sorry it didn't go week this evening," he says.

"It's fine. I never knew that Reyna had Jason's child."

Dakota smiles. "Alison? She's a feisty one."

"She looked very pretty this evening, and her two guests were handsome too."

He frowns. "So I looked ugly?"

"No, I thought you looked very handsome than everyone else."

He blushes. "Have I told that I love you?"

"Yeah?"

"Then say yes."

"What?"

Dakota lets go of her hand and goes on one knee as he pulls out a purple velvet box from his back pocket. "Gwendolyn, even thought you tend to yap my ear off, I still love you and it would be an honor if you let me call you my wife. Will you marry me?" He opens the box that reveals a white diamond with a lavender color band.

"Yes!" She hugs him and is in tears as Dakota puts the ring on her.

He hugs her. _I know I've made mistakes in my life, but this is not a mistake,_ he thinks.

* * *

**Well, that was a lot of romance and drama for one chapter. Don't worry, I'll write about Jean and Aarons' Sherlock Homles adventure and fill in the other gaps in the next chapter. Review!**


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